Best selling. Best value. Most popular with new users.
Sounds more like a tag line for the Toyota Camry than a handheld computer. But much like the well selling Camry, the palmOne Tungsten E was very accessible and made a very effective impression on those who were looking for a PDA. Combining a great price and a nice package of included software, the Tungsten E basically ran away with sales records selling over a million units in the past 17 months. And even more like the Camry, when it comes time for updating and redesigning, you can either take the drastic route (see the last two generations of the Ford Taurus to see what happened there), or take the evolutionary route and just fine tune things here and there. For the Tungsten E2, palmOne took the latter route and refined an effective formula resulting in one of the best buys in the PDA world.
The refresh of the Tungsten E comes in the form of the Tungsten E2. If you will, think of the 2 as meaning version 2.0. There were many aspects of the original TE that needed refinement such as; battery life, faulty screens and buttons on some models, and the lack of wireless options such as Bluetooth or WiFi for getting online. The Tungsten E2 addresses these issues, and does so without missing a beat.
Compared to the Tungsten E the Tungsten E2 has:
* A faster processor, 200MHz versus 126MHz
* More available memory, 29.7 versus 28.8, though both have a total of 32MB (the non-usable memory is used as heap space)
* Non-volatile memory, so important data won't be lost if the battery dies
* A screen with true colors and higher brightness levels (30% brighter and 40% better color saturation)
* A bigger battery with software improvements for better battery handling
* Bluetooth wireless technology for connecting to other Bluetooth devices such as phones, PDAs, and printers
* The new palmOne multi-connector (which is much faster than the previous mini-USB connector)
* New software features, like Documents To Go 7.0 and the favorites view in the application launcher
So what do I think about it? In short, this is an attractive update to a very popular model and the price stays reasonable (suggested retail price of $249). There are still some rough edges, but the positives more than make up for it. Read on to find out specific thoughts, and participate in the discussion to give you own thoughts.
In the Box
The TE2 comes in an attractively designed plastic casing that seemed much easier to open than some other casings. The TE2 is well displayed and the other materials are in a maroon box.
This is what's in the package:
* Quick Start Guide
* PalmOne software installation CD
* USB sync cable that now uses the palmOne multi-connector found on the Tungsten T5 and Treo 650 models
* Power cable
* Flip cover
* Graffiti 2 stickers
* One palmOne Universal Screen protector
* Software installation CD
Getting started is as simple as making sure that the E2 is charged and then installing the software to your computer for its first HotSync. Unlike previous models, it is best to make a clean install of the Palm Desktop software and all the conduits, as well as to remove any backup folders that you may have via a previous version of Palm Desktop. If you are a current owner of the T5, I would not recommend uninstalling Palm Desktop as the versions are the same.
Hardware
Processor : 200 MHz Intel XScale
Operating System: Palm OS v5.4 (Garnet)
Display : 3 inch 320 x 320 screen
Memory : 32 MB non-volatile RAM (26MB available)
Size & Weight : 4.5" x 3.1" x .59", 4.7 ounces
Expansion : One Secure Digital slot, multi-connector
Docking : USB cable
Communication : Bluetooth 1.1, infrared
Audio : Internal monaural speaker, 3.5mm headphone jack
Battery : Lithium-Ion battery, not user replaceable
Input : 4 application buttons; 5-way directional pad; touchscreen
from Bargainpda.com
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