Palm Tungsten T3 (with wireless card)
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Posted on 2007-04-04 11:28:15
The Tungsten T3 is one of the high-end PDA's from palmOne. This little beauty has a gorgeous 320x480 Transreflective TFT color screen. The screen is the same size as the Tungsten T5's screen, but it packs all of this into a smaller footprint due to the sliding screen, making it much more convenient to carry than some of the bigger units available. Like the T5 it can rotate 90 degrees to give a "landscape" view of whatever application you are using.
We got to test drive the T3 along with the WiFi card for a month. Sweet deal, huh?
Features
Inside the T3 a 32-bit, 400MHz Intel(R) Xscale(TM) processor runs Palm OS v5.2.1 quite well. It comes with 64MB of memory, but the actual memory available is only 52MB. Still this is more than enough to store tons of applications and documents. All of this power is packed into a chassis measuring 4.3" x 3.0" x 0.66" when closed. Weighing in at 5.5oz., it is definitely a noticeable weight in your pocket, but if you are already used to having PDA around, you probably won't mind.
The T3's shortcut buttons will look familiar to anyone who has used a Palm product before. If for some reason you don't like what they are originally mapped to you can always remap them. I used this feature to put features I used a lot within easy access of my fingers.
One of the great features of the T3 is the voice memo capability. On the left side of the body is a voice memo button. It is also re-mappable, but in the original configuration pressing this brings up the voice memo screen which allows you to store dictation into the T3. This feature is extremely convenient, especially when need to take note of something but are unable to scribble Graffiti(R) 2 onto the pad (i.e. when driving, walking, or otherwise moving yourself around).
The built-in speaker allows you to listen to your memos (or MP3s, if you buy the expansion card) aloud, no need to plug-in headphones. A 1/8" jack is available if you wish to listen more discretely.
The Lithium Polymer battery in the T3 is great. It holds a charge wonderfully. Of course using the WiFi card causes the battery to drain faster, but it still lasts the whole day under the normal periodic daily use that I subjected it too.
It comes with Bluetooth support is built-in. Also has the Documents to Go application which allows you to view and edit Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, and Excel documents natively on the T3. It can sync with Outlook, but only on Windows systems.
You will need Windows 98 or higher or Mac 9.1+/Mac OS X in order to synch it with your computer.
A list of notable software included with the T3 (installed or bundled, for a more complete list see http://www.palmone.com/us/products/handhelds/tungsten-t3/inthebox.epl): Calendar Contacts Tasks Memos Note Pad DataViz® Documents To Go Professional Edition v6.0 VersaMail™ 2.6 Palm™ Photos Adobe® Reader® Palm Reader powerOne™ Calculator Java Palm™ Web Pro
Review
I cannot say enough about the screen. It is large and bright and makes it a joy to read documents on it. Being able to have a huge library of portable ebooks on the T3 is reason enough to get one of these.
I for one also love that the T3 comes with a HotSynch/recharging cradle, unlike the Tungsten T5 which comes only with a cord. Although not as portable as a cord perhaps, it gives me a warm feeling to dock my T3 in its cradle. I guess it just feels like every thing's in its right place.
The T3 works with the wonderful palmOne wireless keyboard, although it must be bought separately. If you are going to use your T3 for any great amount of data entry I would definitely recommend the keyboard.
Although not a necessity for a PDA, MP3 playback support is not standard, it requires an additional card. A downside to this, if you wish to multi-task and use WiFi and play MP3s at the same time, you are out of luck. Also, I have heard that there are shareware programs for the T3 that allow it to be used as a portable flash drive, but I would have liked to seen this functionality standard for this model.
Although it is in about the same price ballpark as the upgraded Tungsten T5, the T3 has some features that set it apart from just being a lesser T5. The voice memo ability and sliding screen are both wonderful features that make it a draw for those who might otherwise be considering the T5.
WiFi Card
Having the WiFi card was great. I was able to check webpages on the go. I was able to telnet into remote machines and run things from my lab in a terminal window. I have wireless at home and on campus, and it was easy to set up both networks and to switch between them. It didn't drain the battery nearly as much as I thought it would, plus it switched off when not needed in order to conserve battery life. It even has an option to login and control VPN from the T3, this is one feature I wasn't able to checkout since I didn't have time to setup one up, but regardless, this is an impressive feature for those tech-savvy on the go types.
Conclusion
The Tungsten T3 is a great mid-to-upper PDA from palmOne. The screen is large and bright, plus it fits easily into your pocket. Operations wise, it does all you would expect, and has some wonderful perks that make it stand out.