I have been using some Palm OS PDAs and mobile phones for quite a long time (since 2000) and was really happy with them until I switched over to a Nokia E71 based on Symbian S60 because that platform offers way more software (PuTTY on a S60 mobile phone!) for my daily needs.
I’m sad though to hear, that–according to a Networkworld article–Palm Inc. announced the end of the Palm OS product line.
I am currently using a Palm Treo 680 smartphone as a business phone.
I was thinking about getting a used iPhone (1st generation) sometimes, because my data plan only allows EDGE on the German Vodafone network. Recently I read a lot about the Nokia E71, e.g., a short review by Joel (who, by the way, writes a great blog at joelonsoftware.com which you should definitely check out if you haven’t heard about it so far) and a review on Engadget Mobile. Anyways, I also found another review of an owner who exchanged his 680 for an E71 and he seems quite happy.
As far as the software variety is concerned, there are a lot of applications for the Series 60 platform and also for Apple’s iPhone but I expect even more open-source software to be available for the S60s in the future and, to satisfy my hacking skills, I think I’ll more likely learn programming an S60 device than the iPhone (python on the S60 is another plus).
A question for my readers: Does anyone know if it’s possible to a) tether the E71 to a MacBook Pro or Thinkpad (via Bluetooth or cable) AND to tunnel non-HTTP(s) traffic, e.g., SSH connections to a designated host (listening on the SSH standard port 22) through port 80 or 443?
If you bought your version of The Missing Sync for Palm OS after May, 1 2007 you might qualify for a free upgrade to the newest version. See MarkSpace’s website for further instructions.
I bought The Missing Sync when I got my Treo 680. Synchronization should (in theory) work fine und Mac OS X (Tiger) with iSync and Palm Desktop. However, I had some strange feelings when the Palm wouldn’t sync anymore unless I removed the iSync preference files.
In addition, iSync seems also only able to sync one address and did randomly “forget” some of my contact’s phone numbers or e-mail addresses. The Missing Sync works much better (although I’m not able to sync via Bluetooth right now, I’m trying to get that fixed after I upgrade to v6.0) and it supports multiple gimmicks like videos and music on your Palm device. Definitely worth the price ($39.95 for the full version, $24.95 for the update).
