Customer Reviews

Sony CLIE PEG-SL10 Handheld

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(21)
3 star:		(11)
2 star:		(13)
1 star:		(11)

 

 

I have now had my new Sony PEG-SL10 for about 24 hours, and I have to say, overall, I am very impressed.

This is my 2nd PDA - my first being a Handspring Visor Deluxe. I wanted something that had a somewhat better display and had better memory expandability. And while color would have been a nice feature to have, it was not something I needed to spend the extra money on.

The hi-res display is really sweet !! Letters are no longer "blocky" looking. It just has a nicer, smoother look to it. The size & weight is fine for me - I'm not looking for something that will fit in my wallet - and its much smaller than my Visor anyway. The cover is adequate, and I may ultimately opt for a more protective case in the future. The buttons on the front are just fine (a little smaller than the standard Palm or Handspring buttons). Overall, this unit feels solid. I had read an article on another website where people were complaining that the touch screen on this unit wasn't very responsive. Me personally, I did not find this to be the case (but this could be a subjective issue from person to person).

But aside from the new hi-res display, what really drew me to this model was 1) the ability to use standard Sony Memory Sticks, and 2) the Jog Wheel & Back Button on the side - this was a brilliant move by Sony to add this to the unit. Its like using the scroll wheel on a mouse. You just scroll to the item you want selected, and then just press the wheel.

My only criticism with this unit does have to do with the display. In a room with softer lighting, the display is a little hard to read. For me, this is minor because I don't mind using the backlight feature. Yeah, using the backlight draws more battery power. But I always keep a healthy stock of batteries in my house anyway and won't mind changing the batteries a little more often. And the display looks GREAT with the backlight on !! But I could see this being an issue with some people.

Compare all the other PDA's on the market in this price class. Personally, I don't think any of them will come close to what you get with this Sony. This price class is typically for the "entry level" PDA. But I do not consider this Sony to be an "entry level" unit. BUT, before you buy this model, I do recommend seeing it firsthand to determine if the display is to your liking, because I can see some people NOT liking it.

I've owned 4 PDA's in my time, and have had extensive experience with everything from a PalmPilot Professional (my first), to the Handspring Visor Edge (my most recent before the SL10). Here's the scoop:

It does everything that you need it to do. It handles all the software, has enough memory to hold all the dates and addresses you're likely to need, and is *very* compact. It's solidly built (unlike the Handspring units, which feel flimsy and fragile - and are flimsy and fragile), very light, and the interface is the standard Palm. It easily fits in a pocket unobtrusively, and is so light you can barely feel it in there.

The jogwheel and back button are *ridiculously* amazing additions to the interface, and I can honestly say that while I thought it was kind of gimmicky in the past (the jogwheel has been featured on many Sony products), now that I'm using it, it's downright indispensable. It allows for excellent one-handed operation.

It's b&w, but colour, in my experience, is pretty useless in a PDA (except to suck battery life). The screen is clear, crisp, high-res, and is clear in all lighting conditions. The backlight is also excellent, and provides clear operation in near-dark to dark conditions.

Graffiti recognition seems to be enhanced, perhaps because of the higher-res screen. I find that there's less backspacing (if at all), even when powering through notes. It comes with an excellent set of included software, most of which is utterly useless for the most part, but with a few gems (the drawing program is quite nice). Also, the memory-stick utilities are excellent.

The memory-stick capabilities are also yet another compelling quality in this PDA. You really will be hard-pressed to use the 8mb of onboard RAM, but why pay more for 16mb when you have near-infinite storage? Very nice.

All of this for around [price]. There's simply nothing on the market that can compete at that price-point. Honestly, this PDA competes with *much* higher-priced units for sheer usability and convenience. It fills a niche for a disposable PDA; I'm not afraid to lose it or handle it (unlike a [price] PDA, where it's a ritual to use, and you're always afraid that it'll break, or fall, or whatever.) If anything happens to it, your data is backed up and you simply pick up another one. At that price, it becomes a secondary data-retrieval device, much like a cel phone, instead of a high-priced toy.

The only caveat is that it's battery-operated (as opposed to the Lithium Ion rechargeables out there.) Personally, I'd prefer a rechargeable, but it adds a *lot* more weight, and the unit lasts a good two weeks with constant use, so it's not bad.

For an excellent PDA with functionality, convenience, and style, the SL10 is, in my opinion, the finest choice on the market. After a month of operation, I am both impressed and happy with my decision to purchase this unit.

the choice between Palm OS and Pocket PC was a tough one for me to make. PPC has built in MP3 and video while having little battery life. Palms are typically half the price (at least this one is)and it still does Microsoft word and excel like a PPC. Past that the unit is great, ive gotten about 20 hrs of life out of the FACTORY batteries, though some might want to have internal Li-ion batts, just so theres less hassle, but with traveling away from a syncable pc, and AAAs everywhere, it seem fine to me. the display is sorta hard to read in dim light, though outdoors and brightly lit indoor areas are fine. the backlight provides a lot of illumination with very little extra battery drain (great for playing solitare or reading emials in bed. the only qualm i have is sony hasnt made screen protectors and they say there arnt any on the horizon, so im goin to have to find some that fit, regardless of what they were meant to go on. Oh and the fact that the sync cradle is "optiona: for [more money] (?) seems like a money making ploy to me. the cable works fine, its just a pain to plug in that little hole in the side, plus pocket lit may get jammed up in there as well, but thats true for all open spaces. I have yet to used the Memeory stick slot, but it and the jog dial and back button are just little extra perks. For [the money], this is a great little sleek Palm PDA for those who just need to know when and where to be, without the snazzy color or MP3 or video features(those these are expansion options from sony)

That's correct, this is the last PDA made to run on AAA batteries. All future ones would be running on a propreitary Lithium Ion battery. LiIon dies in 2 yrs time leaving you with a dead PDA. And replacing LiIon batteries is not easy or economical either. Yeah I know the technology changes a lot with time, but to throw away a working device just because its battery died is stupid. (All cell phone & laptop makers sell replacements for their battery packs, why not PDA makers?)

So after that rant about LiIon batteries back to the PDA review. The major pro's are,
1. Low price and still good build quality.
2. Looks good, small size, light weight and a very nice flip cover included.
3. Jog dial and memory stick expansion slot.
4. HiRes display and backlight (unlike Zire).
5. 6-7 hrs of battery life on a pair of NiMH AAA with backlight on all the time. AAA batteries can be found in easily in most stores for replacement.
6. Runs Palm OS 4 which has zillion free apps available and is very easy to use unlike Windows based PDA's.
7. Good set of bundled applications.
8. Comes with a simple non-propreitary USB cable. No bulky charger, cradle or other stuff to worry about on trips.

Con's,
1. The LCD is a bit dark for use in medium lighting conditions (although good in bright and in dark).
2. Eats batteries much faster than old Palm's which ran like weeks on a single set.
3. No other fun stuff like mp3 or color screen, but then look at its price!

In short if you want to get a PDA which will do basic stuff and keep running for a few yrs get a SL10 (found only refurbished or on ebay). All the new color PDA's will come with a LiIon battery which becomes a pain after one year of use when their charge capacity decreases. (Other AAA based ones that can be still found are Visor Edge/Deluxe and Palm iiixe.)

So far, I've been very impressed with what is basically a bargain-priced PDA.
It's got all the features that any low priced Palm model would have, and the high resolution screen is a nice step up from the basic 160x160 resolution on the Palm line of PDAs.
Haven't had the chance to test out the memory stick function, but I'm sure it works fine like any other type of expansion offered on any other handheld. The Graffiti input for the text gets the characters right most of the time but for Microsoft Word document creation (with the included software) I'd get the Sony keyboard add on that lets you use this PDA like a basic word processing laptop.
All in all, with the software included and a keyboard add on this PDA is a great replacement for a laptop if you only need some specific functions. I use it to take notes in class and work on all kinds of papers and thus far it has saved me over [$$$] compared to what I would have paid for a laptop that lets me do all the things that this Sony Clie does.

I've used the SL10 since almost the day it came out, after testing the Clie NR70V and other high-end handhelds, and I appreciate the features packed into this affordable device.

The 320x320 resolution makes it possible to carry decent black-and-white photos with the included image apps, and its processor is fast enough to handle most tasks. Like most PalmOS 4.x-based machines, it drags on high-intensity apps like XMap Street Atlas USA.

I bought this machine because of its low price tag (considering its specs) and the fact that it still took AAA batteries. I'm awful about remembering to recharge my devices, so I appreciate being able to pop into a drug store when my charge is running low. The batteries don't last as long as they did in my Palm III or IIIx, but then I'm asking this one to do a lot more, too, and I'm a heavy alarm user. I typically get 2-3 weeks out of a single pair.

This is not a PDA with all the cutting-edge bells and whistles, but it's a solid business machine at a price that won't make you feel guilty for upgrading more often. The included software has some good apps along with the junk. I highly recommend it.

I just got this a week ago and it is awful, when compared to what else is available. Sony's CLIE line is awsome, but this model is the lowest of their low. The screen is hard to see under less than perfect light conditions, even with the lime green backlight (I was expecting white, as it says on Sony's website, appearently a different letter at the end of the model number was the difference here). I got a Sony CLIE PEG 615-C and the difference is huge. Add a color screen to the CLIE's 320 x 320 and you have a beautiful display that is easy to read. I only paid 229 for it at Costco, so the color screen, extra memory, rechargable internal lithium battery, and cradle (this is a more useful feature than you would think, especially after using the SL10's USB cord) were well worth the extra 100 dollars. The SL 10 features are awsome (far better than anything you could get in another similarily priced PDA) and the 320x320 is impressive even on this monochrome screen. If you are willing to pay a little more, what you get in return is more than worth it. If you must stick with a ceiling price around $130, I would take this one over a PALM model any day, as it's screen resolution and included features are superior by far. Ultimately however, you can do better by paying a bit more. It's been worth it in my opinon.

At this price, there is simply no competition! Beautifully built, very readable hi-res screen, decent 8 MB RAM, memory-stick slot for expansion, jog-dial and a back button -- what else could one ask for? Yes, it doesn't have a color screen or an MP3 player, but then no other models at this price level have them either. Great PDA for most everyone. I use mine to read books (replaces a 4.5 year old Palm Pilot Personal)

The SL10 is excellent in terms of its compact size, sturdy feel, and wealth of applications. The 320x320 resolution is a nice change from the 160x160 found on Palms and Handsprings. I also like that it uses batteries. I travel a lot and it's more secure to know that I can pick up AAA batteries whereever I am when I might not have access to a plug with which to charge an internal battery unit.
The one major flaw is how dark the screen is. For photo viewing, it almost defeats the advantage of the higher resolution. It can be hard to read in certain light, and the highly reflective screen does not help matters. The SL20 does not have this problem (I saw both side by side at a BestBuy).
The second problem I have had is that the stylus point is not quite as smooth as it should be. Because of this I have scratched my screen a bit. I need to hold the stylus a certain way to make sure I get smooth action on the screen.
Overall, though, this is an excellent unit for the price and has served me well. Before buying, however, I would recommend seeing the screen in person as I think many would not be happy with how dark it is (yes, even with the backlighting).

I owned a Sony Clie SL10 for about 30 minutes. The display is Terribly Dark!!! It didn't matter what type of lighting I was in, it was way too hard to read. I returned it and got the Sony Clie PEG-S360. It cost the same but has a much better display and twice as much memory. I have owned 4 PDA's before this one and this PEG-S360 is truly the best. I got away from Palm products because of the unrealiability of the m125 and because of poor customer service. When I called Sony to ask a question about Hot Sync thay were pleasant and very thorough. They are handling customer service the way Palm use to. I do not recommend the SL10 but I love my PEG-S360.