Heh.. SL-5500 mini-review
Thanks, Doug. I note that eBay has its share of the reading-afflicted: One 5500 is clearly listed as NON-OP and the bid is up to $200+. No mention of warranty (if any) remaining = surely owner would have fixed it first, if s/he could!
Having played with only a couple of these tiny thingies before, I'm in no position to compare the 5500 to others. In tech terms, it's cute as a bugs ear (that'd be Walter Brennan's review).
Simply an amazing collection of features - in a box the size of a Tarot deck:
Handwriting recog, slide-down teeny full-ascii kb!, pickboard or unicode - for entry.
Stylus, finger, joystick or - a few well-chosen pushbuttons for surfing around the usual addr. books, ToDo lists (Gawd.. to Have to look at ToDo lists 24/7 -- what a Fate!) Games, a neat world map with Time in Vladivostok or Anchorage or... Hong Kong! Opera browser (!) Media player -- it's an MP-3 player on steroids. Will record your utterances, too.
Flip-top screen protector is easily removeable. Sharp has many yrs. experience in cramming stuff into tiny Al cases (Titanium would be a nice yuppie Up-Scale {ugh} next step for the perpetually Needing-More). A demo sample of (what used to be called c.e.g. = continuous edge graphics - smoothing) with some blue spheres: indicates more than adequate pic resolution.
SD and Compact Flash accommodated: gather there's a teeny modem in a CF package available - dunno but assume that could be wireless - so ya can send [cackles] to zIWE while sipping a glass of Schrammsburg and mastering mini-Opera interface (not to mention all those E-mails...) Wireless LAN is an icon, as is backup and lots more.
Didn't install the s/w and try the caddy (USB connection), but have to asume that it does it all.. also has IR tiny sensor (!!!) I mean... WTF else could they have tossed in?
In brief: just as soon as it talks to me (and listens with comprehension) - guess I'll 'Need' one ;-)
{sigh} Were I sufficiently organized already - it could contain legions. Alas.. no plans in that direction. My Hell would be: that I would NEED to have my agenda planned.. 6 mos ahead 24/7. (And NEED to 'interface' with humor-impaired National Guard droids making sure that my Zaurus wasn't full of Semtex, my Medal of Honor Not a terrorist weapon and my shoes Not full of Zyklon-B)
Can the day of NEEDing a Zaurus along to prove yer not a Commie, in any Govt building.. be far behind? Anyway.. it's bloody cute! but ominous...
Ashton
who tends to look for 'what the Authoritarians' plan for such techno -?- for our security and uniformity, natch.
Thanks, Doug for the chance to audition it. If only it had an adaptor to talk to the Acura engine computer - I'd HAVE to get one NOW!