PalmOne Zire Handheld

Organization in your Palm

The Zire is attractively colored with a white front and a silvery gray back, but Palm really cut corners with the screen cover. The cover is made of a flexible plastic that flaps around when it is supposed to be centered on the screen, and is awkward to keep out of the way when you want to access the screen. It's so annoying we recommend not using it at all. Fortunately, the screen cover comes separate from the Zire itself so this is easy to do.

While not a powerful handheld, the Zire is worth considering if you're looking for a way to keep your tasks, contacts, and meetings organized. It performs those tasks wonderfully, and is priced affordably. --Patricia Atherly

Pros:

• Mac and PC compatible
• Inexpensive and attractive
• Easy to set up and use
• Comes with a rechargeable battery

Cons:

• Only a 2 MB memory
• No expansion slots
• Palm OS 4.1 instead of the new Palm OS 5
• No backlight
• Flimsy screen cover

What's in the box

• Zire Handheld w/ Rechargeable Battery
• Charging Cable
• USB HotSync Cable
• Getting Started Manual
• CD-ROM with Palm Desktop Software
• Stylus
• Protective Flip Cover

The Zire provides all you need to substitute your paper based agenda out of the box.

About the OS:

Palm OS is actually the standard OS on handhelds (most like Windows on the desktop). This handheld includes a desktop PIM(personal information managers) as well as software to sync with Microsoft Outlook.

There are thousand of programs available for the palm OS add such as enhanced PIM , Personal finance program to syncronize with MS Money and Quicken as well as office suites and games.

Hardware:

Zire has a very stilish design it is almost as small as a Palm M515 or clie T 665. Also this handheld as all Palm branded handhelds is build to last with a tought elegant casing.

It is compatible with Windows and Machintos desktops. The only limitations I find in this computer are that it only has 2 MB of memory (but I am a power user), for most peple 2 MB is plenty to store thousand of addresses as well as and office suite and other programs. Another minor limitation for gammers it that there are only four buttons.

Sumarry:

The zire is arguably the best possible solution for someone just entering the world of handhelds. This is the best entry level handheld computer for the money


A great little box   October 15, 2002
56 out of 57 found this review helpful

Absolutely a first rate basic pda. No, there are no fancy color screens and no, you can't expand it. But, the basics are all there and work perfectly. Date Book, Addresses, To Do list, Memo Pad are the basic functions and all work flawlessly with the Palm desktop software which keeps the Zire and your computer in sync. Info entered directly into your pda gets updated to your computer and vice versa. The Zire has a USB to mini USB cable to hook up to your computer as well as a built in rechargeable battery, which I prefer to constantly replacing batteries. The coolest feature has to be the ability to "beam" info from one pda to another. You have to be close to the other pda, but it really works. If you want to add games or other functions to your Zire, you will find numerous websites with available freeware and shareware. The big question...is 2 megs of memory enough. Currently I have 645 entries in the Address Book, 1050 entries in my Date Book, 400 records in my Memo Pad as well as 2 blackjack games, a poker game, and a chess game. With all of this loaded in the Zire, I still have 1.3 megs of memory available. Really a great little box.


Sleek, Bare Bones-Just What a Palm Pilot Was Meant to Be   November 20, 2002
47 out of 47 found this review helpful

Our 4 year old dropped a hammer on my Palm V, so I had to get a replacement. Although other models have many more features, I bought the Zire.

Why? It's a bare-bones organizer with a rechargable battery. It's exactly what a Palm was meant to be, and why Palm was so successful in the first place several years ago. I now have the latest Palm software in a clean rechargable package for a dirt cheap price.

If you want gazillions of contacts, buy something else. I've never used more than 500. If you want wireless, or color, or music, or video, buy something else. But if you want what the Palm originally set out to be, an intuitive shirt-pocket organizer, with a rechargable battery to boot, get a Zire.


Totally Impressed   December 8, 2002
Pierre A. Hill (York, PA United States)
33 out of 33 found this review helpful

Last year I asked my wife for a PDA for Christmas which I received. She bought a good brand, a top seller, but I was totally frustrated with learning how it works. It shouldn't be that complicated. Maybe the Yippees and the Yuppies are smarter than I am or just determined to overcome any tough challenge. Not me! I bought a Palm Zire and fell in love. It has everything and does everything I need and I learned it in three minutes. The front cover is a soft, plastic flap which seems to be a pain to some but is easy to cope with and who needs backlighting? The battery is rechargable so I don't replace batteries. My calendar stretches on for years, my address book has about 250 entries and I've only just begun, my to do list is brilliantly simply, my note pad goes on forever with ideas, reminders, shopping list, etc. and I can switch from one category to the next with a simple touch of the handy stylus and back again. It is a delight to work with and anyone who slams it is an idiot! You want a stylish Cadillac with a phone and color TV screen, fine, go buy one, but for the price and simplicity you just can't beat it! In the world of sophisticated electronics, this little, light-weight, shirtpocket pal goes the distance for me . . . and probably for you. Simplify your life, get it all done and relax. Anything you need is right there in the Palm of your hand. Zire!


This is a very good PDA   November 1, 2003
Brandon (USA)
57 out of 61 found this review helpful

I am a 13 year old kid who bought this pda with my mowing money for school. This is a very good PDA for its price. It has a nice B&W touch screen and looks cool. It has an Adress book, date book, memo pad, note pad (you can draw stuff on the screen with this), 13 digit calculator, clock & alarm, expense, to do list, and security. A cd comes in the package that has palm desktop software (synchronising stuff), and mine hunt, giraffe, hardball (like pong), and puzzle 15 (theese are all games that you put on the pda through the desktop software). This is a very good pda for anyone who wants one thats cheap in price, but not in quality.