Sony CLIÉ PEG-SJ30

...announcement of the [then] new Sony Clie SJ30 that boasted one of the biggest lists of features for one of the lowest prices.

The Features.

Rather than quote the spec of the device from the manufacturer’s website, I’ll let you do that, here are a list of the features which I saw as important at the time.

·High-resolution colour screen.
·Rechargeable battery
·16MB of memory plus a slot for ...
...It’s also worth noting that Sony cut the price of this item my not supplying a docking cradle…this costs extra and isn’t really worth the money.

Software is supplied to let you synchronise the device with your PC, I use Microsoft Outlook, for my email, calendar, address book and notes and I’ve had no problems whatsoever. The software CD also features a basic version of Documents to Go, allowing the synchronisation of Word and Excel ... more

If you look through my old reviews you’ll see I’m a bit of a gadget fan and over the last few years I’ve worked my way through several PDA’s, including the Palm III, Palm IIIxe, and the Handspring Visor.

Well, last September I finally tired of my black and white screen PDA and decided to splash out on a new one. I became pretty excited at the announcement of the [then] new Sony Clie SJ30 that boasted one of the biggest lists of features for one of the lowest prices.

The Features.

Rather than quote the spec of the device from the manufacturer’s website, I’ll let you do that, here are a list of the features which I saw as important at the time.

·High-resolution colour screen.
·Rechargeable battery
·16MB of memory plus a slot for Sony Memory Sticks and other accessories.
·Palm Operating System (v 4.1)
·Loads of bundled software.
·Infrared
·Compact design (i.e. small)
·A price of just over £220

First of all, I’ll start with the screen, since it’s superb. The only time I’ve had any real trouble with the screen was when I was wondering round London and the sun was really bright so I couldn’t read the details of the meeting I going to. Nevertheless, all you have o do is angle the device correctly and squint.

The downside to the quality colour screen is that it drinks battery juice when left on. The way to solve this is to turn the contrast down halfway which doesn’t make too big a difference to the picture quality but makes a 4 times difference to the battery life.

After a full charge I usually fin the battery will handle about 10 hours of intense use. Which is pretty good going when you only use it for about 10 minutes at a time. However, if you get stuck on a long boring train ride it can get frustrating when the battery run out. There is no way around this since it isn’t possible to buy spare batteries, although Virgin Trains now feature power points in some trains, which is good.

The 16MB of memory is really useful for me since I use a lot of large applications. I also like to store pictures and MP3s but I leave most of these on Memory Sticks. Aside from the extra storage having a memory stick allows you to back up the data on he Clie in case any thing goes wrong. I’ve had few problems with the devices over the last few months so the ability to store all my data while the device is away being repaired is a great benefit. More about the problems I’ve had with the device later.

The Kitchen Sync?

Apologies for the bad pun but I like my headers.

The device comes with a power pack to charge the battery and a USB cable to connect it to a PC. The too lots of cables create extra baggage to I went and bought a single USB cable that lets you charge you take power from your PC to charge the device while syncing. It’s also worth noting that Sony cut the price of this item my not supplying a docking cradle…this costs extra and isn’t really worth the money.

Software is supplied to let you synchronise the device with your PC, I use Microsoft Outlook, for my email, calendar, address book and notes and I’ve had no problems whatsoever. The software CD also features a basic version of Documents to Go, allowing the synchronisation of Word and Excel files. I strongly recommend upgrading this to the premium edition so that you can also view and edit PowerPoint files as well as add and view attachments in your email.

You want more?

Should the contents of the box not satisfy your needs, Sony have made sure that there are plenty of extras for you to spend your hard earned money on. These include:
·Various keyboards
·Mini digital camera that inserts into the memory stick slot but doesn’t really take good pictures.
·Audio Adapter for playing MP3s … more later
·Bluetooth Memory Stick…great but expensive.

Problems??

The device is great and since I bought mine last year I’ve recommended it to friends…two of which subsequently bought on. They have had no problems whatsoever.

BUT…I have had to send my back to the factory three times in the last 7 months. The first two times were because the screen had lost some of its touch-sensitivity and I couldn’t use it properly. The last time was when I bought the additional MP3 player and it constantly skipped. It turns out it was the accessory not the Clie, but it’s all fixed now.

Price?

I bought mine on Amazon for £220 last September but they’re now going for about £180 and you can probably pick one up on Ebay for £150.

Any more questions?

Just email me.
 

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