I bought my Psion 3a in 1996 as I wanted a way of keeping track of appointments while travelling around in my work. The Psion is easy to use, and it is only rarely that I have needed to consult the (excellent) instruction manual.
Battery life is excellent, and the display is clear and sharp. ... Read review
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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
Advantages: Well constructed, very well thought out and easy to use software, excellent battery life. Disadvantages: Backing up onto PC is not too easy.
I bought my Psion 3a in 1996 as I wanted a way of keeping track of appointments while travelling around in my work. The Psion is easy to use, and it is only rarely that I have needed to consult the (excellent) instruction manual.
Battery life is excellent, and the display is clear and sharp. Even though it is now four and a half years old it is very well made and still looks like new. There are plenty of add-on programs available either ... ...and then transferred to the Psion using the PsionWin software (available at extra cost).
The software is not all that easy to use, but is worth buying as it does allow you to back up all of the files onto a PC.
The built in applications for the 3a are excellent, and I have used the following extra programs with the 3a.
1. Autoroute - which is excellent.
2. Scrabble - very addictive game with many ... more
I bought my Psion 3a in 1996 as I wanted a way of keeping track of appointments while travelling around in my work. The Psion is easy to use, and it is only rarely that I have needed to consult the (excellent) instruction manual.
Battery life is excellent, and the display is clear and sharp. Even though it is now four and a half years old it is very well made and still looks like new. There are plenty of add-on programs available either on the Psion memory cards (rather expensive) of downloadable from the internet and then transferred to the Psion using the PsionWin software (available at extra cost).
The software is not all that easy to use, but is worth buying as it does allow you to back up all of the files onto a PC.
The built in applications for the 3a are excellent, and I have used the following extra programs with the 3a.
1. Autoroute - which is excellent. 2. Scrabble - very addictive game with many skill levels. 3. Monopoly - rather difficult as you can't see the entire board. 4. Lotto 3a - useful downloaded shareware 5. Accounting shareware - keeping track of spending 6. Financial Calculator - useful and easy to use 7. Games software - from Psion
On one occasion the Psion locked up, and I had to reset it, losing all of the data in the process. Luckily I was able to restore from my backed up files from the PC.
On another occasion I had a problem with the screen and had to send the Psion for repair. I consulted Psion through their website, and was told the proceedure, and the expected turn-around time. The Psion was returned within the stated time with the screen replaced and new batteries fitted, but with a new fault whereby the touch sensitive icons just below the screen failed to work. I contacted them about this and was told to return the machine, but I find it so useful that I didn't want to be without it again, so I live with this difficulty.
A few months ago I unfortunately dropped it, and now the left hinge which joins the screen to the body has broken.
To sum up - a very useful palmtop computer - easy to use, very well made, but do back up your data on a regular basis.
Advantages: It's very portable Disadvantages: hard to find now, but worth the effort
Sadly My Psion is on it's last legs, the hinges where the screen flips up are broken............it still works great just needs a new body, a bit like myself.
My wife bought me my Psion Series 3 years ago, and I have used it continuously since then. The basic unit is 16.5cm * 2.2cm *8.5cm, which is a bit bigger than the PDA's going around just now. At it's heart is an NEC V30 7.7Mhz processor. I know what your thinking 7.7Mhz very slow. Well by ... ...many lengthy documents comfortably. The Psion has 1Mb of memory which can cope with a large quantity of info such as Word processor files, database files, and spreadsheet files.
It also has a Spreadsheet, which has all the basic functions and a few more.
It has a database, which can hold several hundred records. I've used my database to keep track of all the videos/DVD's we have hired. We rate them out of ten just in case we wish to watch one again. ...
donf18 31.08.2005
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Psion Series 3a
Advantages: Still pretty neat several years later Disadvantages: The hinge breaks. Not state of the art any more
A Psion 3a was the first PDA that I owned. At the time it was way in advance of anything else on the market. The fact that it has a keyboard (which is quite useable) makes it more useful for doing things like word processing than a pen based PDA (not that I recommend writing a novel on it).
The calendar facility is as good as you can hope for - it offers a wide range of event frequencies and the option to put any audio file you want as the alarm ... ...the way in which the psion 3a interfaces with the computer. You can (with the right software) pretty much treat the memory drive on the psion as an added drive on your PC... and the drives on your PC as added drives on the psion. This gives you a lot of power over any synchronization (although the palm pilot automated synchronization was admittedly missing).
My main disappointment with this product was it's durability - and I was not the only person ...
Kevin_Pritchard 12.06.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Psion Series 3a
Advantages: More useful than a Filofax and you can play games on it too Disadvantages: Expensive to repair
I have a Psion 3a with 2mb memory. This is comparable to the newer versions of the 3 except it is slower and doesn't have the notepad feature. I inherited my Psion and it was one of those things that I never knew I couldn't live without. Beforehand I had to store all my friends and families birthdays on bits of paper in my Filofax. Now I can just forget about the birthdays until I get an alarm two weeks before the due date, then all I have to do ... ...be as expensive as a Psion itself.
Most people treat the Psion as a PDA I think of it as a fully-fledged mini computer that can do a lot that a larger machine can. As before I bought my PC I was able to type letters (yes even on that keyboard) and even send e-mail using it. If you can’t afford a new Psion 7, 5 or 3mx go for anything from a 3a onwards as you can pick one up with a lot of bits for about £75 second-hand, it’s a bargain.
One word of ...
TimothyC 12.07.2000
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Psion Series 3a
Advantages: VERY small and compact Disadvantages: not much software available these days
...surprised when I bought a Psion series 3mx. The processor was around 30mhz and caused the machine to run very quickly. The machines now date back to around 1993, but they are still one of the best handhelds today. They have plenty of memory to store your files and programs, and if you somehow use up the memory you can buy cards that give even more. They are cheap to pick up these days, and are well worth the money.
They feature Spreadsheet, Word ... ...(word etc) so you can sycronise with your desktop, using a program called Psi-Win and seriel or parallel cables. There were software packages available that you can now pick up second hand, or you can download a lot of stuff off the net. Each model also has a speaker on the bottom for voice memos and an infa red port to connect to your desktop or another series 3. Under test, we found that it does not connect to other handhelds with infa red (Sharp ...
tim0001 03.03.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Psion Series 3a
Advantages: Cheap these days, very versatile, long battery life Disadvantages: No longer cutting edge technology
The Psion 3a (2MB version) has been in my posession for over 4 years now, and is still in daily use after all this time. The number of software applications available for the 3a is staggering - many free on on shareware over the internet. The applications that I use most are DP Bank (shareware) which is a personal accounts package, AutoRoute Express (route planner), Monopoly, Scrabble and most of the built in programmes. I recently teamed the Psion ... ...(a freeware programme). This links in to the Auto Route software and provides a real time moving map display - VERY neat and very useful on a journey. Given the technology available today, I probably wouldn't get a new 3a, but as a second hand (cheap these days) it would be unbeatable. I have absolutely no plans to replace the unit I have, it's great. ...
Advantages: Excellent software, easy to back up data using software included. Disadvantages: Construction, weak hinges, coating of the case soon wears off.
I bought my PsionSeries 5 after been very satisfied with a 3a which I had owned since 1996.
The screen on the Series 5 is not as clear as the 3a, and contrast needs to be adjusted carefully for each programme to get the best view. the backlight feature doesn't really help, and it uses a lot more power.
Within a few months the coating on the outside of the case started peeling off, even though I keep the Series 5 in a leather case.
The built in applications are excellent, and there a number of third party applications which can be purchased or downloaded from the internet. I am using the following additional software:
1. RMR fuel - enter the price paid and the number of litres and work out
mpg.
2. Palmtop Route Planner (on CD) Excellent software covering a number
of European countries. You enter your starting ...
johnalderton 25.02.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Psion Series 5mx
Advantages: Portable computer Disadvantages: They seem quite prone to breaking.
I've been a fan of Psion for a long time (at least 6 years). Starting off with a Series3a I used it all the time and downloaded many great applications from the Internet. After a couple of years Psion brought out the Series 5 which I decided to buy.
The unit itself is slightly bigger and more of a boxy shape, but it's still nice and has a soft touch. The applications are similar to others in the range which include word processor, spreadsheet, database, clock, world time, calculator games and sound recorder. Additionally software can be downloaded from the Internet or written in OPL (similar to BASIC, if you're a programmer like myself). The unit unfolds nicely to reveal the keyboard and screen. I can't see any use for the sound recorder, but it is quite good by allowing the applications to play sound effects (ie, games ...
richardleonard 17.09.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Psion Series 5mx
Calculator, Agenda, Database, Word, Alarm/Clock, Thesaurus, Spreadsheet, Digital Sound recorder/editor
Manufacturer's product description
The Psion Series 3a is the out-of-the-box mobile computing solution for busy execs and professionals like you. Delivering remarkable speed, connectivity and functionality, the Psion Series 3a is a leader in palm computing. While the Psion Series 3a is independently powerful, it also connects seamlessly to your desktop PC creating expansive opportunities for PC synchronization and file sharing. From top to bottom, inside and out, the Psion Series 3a is your powerhouse to working freely on the go.
