Dell Axim X5

Author's product rating:   

Look & Feel	Good
Memory / capacity	Good
Comfort & Portability	Satisfactory
Ease of use	Easy
Value For Money	Good

Advantages:	Stable, full of features
Disadvantages:	Bulky, very expensive accessories

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

I wanted a PDA for some time, because its like a laptop but smaller and more efficient, especially for somebody like me who has probably has the worst short term memory and is hence completely dependent on technology.

After having gone through what's on the market I finally decided on this nifty little toy, it seemed to be a perfect match. Here is what I found...

First Impression:
Opening the highly unstylish box (nothing like the iPod's superb box) I found all the tools I would ever need, from instruction manuals to cable and software and a battery and a charger. The battery was slightly charged already to my extreme joy so I was able to straight away insert the battery and test it. It really does have everything you'll ever need. Excel, Word, Calculator, Calendar, Games, Notes, e-Mail, Contacts, and best of all its not only compatible with SD cards but it has a flash slot as well. This is something that very few if any of the competition have. I have found this very good as I can get accessories for it (BlueTooth, Wireless LAN, etc.) and still be able to transfer info through the SD card (ie. to my digital camera).
Apart from the fact that the case for it received protects the PDA it is very inefficient and makes it even bigger.

Getting the hang of it all:
At first sight Microsoft introduce once again their patronizing help files and annoying suggestions. However I am most pleased to know that after about 20minutes it will stop annoying you and let you get along with your own life.
Using it first time (and friends trying to use it) it seemed to be absolutely impossible I couldn't work out where different things are and why different features popped up randomly all across the place, but after a bit of playing around I finally work out why it is all designed the way it is. With minimal tapping on the screen I can my whole life sorted in a matter of seconds it really is a beauty. Microsoft have done one great job on this one (and I'm a Linux user).

Software and Synchronization:
On the CD that comes along with the PDA you get a copy of Outlook and ActiveSync (Synchronizes your PDA with your computer). This couldn't have been easier to load and install on my Windows computer. And after scratching my head I managed to set the right settings that suited me best within minutes.
The PDA can be set to synchronize with Outlook and other Microsoft products each and every time you connect the PDA to your computer, this makes life extremely easy as once you've connected it to your USB port it’s off and away and will be done within the next 10 seconds.

It is extremely important to ensure that you synchronize it every so often as the PDA only uses its RAM for storage, the fixed memory can be used by you however it is there to store the OS and not the data you input. Hence if you were to pull out both battery and backup battery you would lose all your information.
Now this might seem a bit dumb as it did to me at first but without going into technical details it is actually beneficial, you've just got to remember to back it up every so often, and if you set ActiveSync to do it automatically then you'll most likely be backing up more often than you think you are.

Conclusion:
As with all Microsoft products, they are only compatible with themselves. So if you don't own a copy of Windows then don't even bother thinking about buying this product. I have not found any drivers for it to work on Linux however I know there are ways of doing it.
The SD and Compact Flash slots are a brilliant idea. And this product couldn't be better for people who are constantly on the move and need to have all critical information with them where ever they go without the hassle of laptops then once again this is for you.
Although I do question as to why Microsoft have included so many pointless features into this OS, such as Word. This at first glance will seem like a good idea however it is impossible to write a decent sized document as you are only able to slowly type so many characters per minute.
However keeping that in mind they have brought out an extremely efficient way of writing, this OS includes AI software (Artificial Intelligence) called Transcriber which is able to read your handwriting and adapt to it very quickly, so you're able to write in your own handwriting on the screen and then the PDA will transform it into computer graphics text.

Big, but one good organizer to keep with you where ever you go.