I purchased the Dell X3i during the latter half of 2004 with the intention of using it for an in-car sat-nav system. Although the PDA is pretty cheap brand new from Dell, I decided on purchasing one from ebay at a bargain price as it included the docking station.
I'm very very impressed with it indeed. I've got a 512meg SD card installed, with Tom Tom maps of the whole UK. I also have a few hundred megs of digital music on there. Battery life is excellent - I can use it on the train to London (about 2 hours) for listening to music, and only use about 50% of the battery. The inbuilt speaker is loud enough to be heard above road noise when used as a sat-nav device. The screen is crystal clear and bright. Software runs fast enough for me, and most importantly it runs Tom Tom with ease.
The chasis of the pda is very small and belies it's powerful innards. My version came with built in WLAN which is also very powerful and can pickup networks from down the street!
So although primarily used as sat-nav, I do use it for WLAN internet access and as a digital music player - i've also used it to watch movies!
Now for the most important thing - price! I bought one from ebay for £160, fully boxed with instructions plus the docking cradle (usually £20)! The PDA usually retails for well over £200 from Dell - especially with the WLAN module included. Dell still sell this particular model, but that part of the website is down at the moment unfortunately so can't provide a more up-to-date price! I'll update the review shortly. Link this in with a £60 Tom Tom GPS adapter, and you have sat-nav in your car for a bargain price.
Buy one!
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Handheld - 128 MB RAM - Screen: 4 in inch - Display: TFT active matrix - CPU: XScale PXA310 - Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi - Microsoft Windows Mobile 6.0, Microsoft Windows Mobile 6.0 Classic
Handheld - 32 MB, 64 MB RAM - Screen: 3.5 in inch - Display: TFT active matrix - CPU: XScale - Infrared - Microsoft Windows Mobile for Pocket PC 2003, Microsoft Windows Mobile for Pocket PC 2003 Premium, Microsoft Windows Mobile for Pocket PC 2002 Premium
Handheld - 64 MB RAM - Screen: 3.5 in inch - Display: TFT active matrix, Transflective - CPU: XScale PXA270, Intel® XScaleTM PXA270 - Wi-Fi, Infrared, Bluetooth - Microsoft Windows Mobile 5.0
I'm considering a Dell for my next PDA. A while to go yet though since it wasn't long since I bought my current one. I'd get something in a higher range though.
R4v1 24.01.2005 14:17
i am currently look to buy a PDA with sat nav and reading your review has helped me quite a lot thank you.
Celia86 24.01.2005 12:13
Hey - good review but I think you need more detail, e.g. how much it costs in the shops etc. Let me know if you change anything and I'll come back and re-rate! =0)
Upgrade your Bluetooth-enabled Axim X30, X50(v) and X51(v) with Dell's Bluetooth GPS ... more
Navigation System. Turn-by-turn voice guidance to 20 European countries in 5 languages combined with the performance of the new SIRF 3 chip. Never get lost again!
Postage & Packaging: Free Delivery Availability: 3-7 days
Upgrade your Bluetooth-enabled Axim X30, X50(v) and X51(v) with Dell's Bluetooth GPS ... more
Navigation System. Turn-by-turn voice guidance to 20 European countries in 5 languages combined with the performance of the new SIRF 3 chip. Never get lost again!
Postage & Packaging: see site for shipping costs Availability: 3-7 days
Jan 24th, 2005
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