HP Jornada 728 Palmtop Handheld PC $99.90 shipped

[Calesta]

Quote from dannomite : Thanks. 14 hours seems pretty good. Wonder how many charge cycles people are getting before the battery starts to go. Also, do you know if these recertified units feel/look used? Or are they cosmetically identical to new units? I agree about the internet thing. I know it's easier to just have a device that doesn't have internet than be tempted to hop on with a netbook or notebook. some people have better self control, but when i hit a writer's block, bam, surf-time. and these jornada units are great because you can touch type on them, making typing on them pretty fast in relation to how you would type on a normal sized keyboard. i think i might wait and see some other options, but rep to you for a good deal and sticking around to answer questions.

No clue on charge cycles... but I'm sure that extra batteries can be had on eBay for not too much. These were pretty popular when they were new. If they're factory recertified / refurbished, I would think that there would be some testing to make sure that the battery was in some kind of serviceable condition. I know that when AT&T sells "refurbished" phones, they replace the battery, case and keypad (according to a friend that used to work for them). Maybe HP does the same?

Condition- here's a recent review about the geeks.com package:

http://www.rbmods.com/Articles/Ge..._728/1.php

Since it's from earlier this year and about the same price point, it's probably from the same refurb batch or program. My guess is that the unit in this review came from the same source as all the other stores that are selling them right over $100. It's a more recent lead anyway compared to reviews from when these palmtops were brand new.

I do it too- work work work, surf surf surf. Thank goodness I'm not the writer in the family. She writes, I get greasy, race and blow people's heads apart online. If I was a writer, I'd probably want a device that couldn't get online, at least not easily.

Thanks for the rep! I don't know how well I do answering questions since I'm definitely not an authority on these things, but I did do a great deal of research before deciding on this one for the wife. I guess it's the engineer in me. I have to research everything.

[rjpemt]

Great device, have a 720 and a 728. If you need a device that fills the niches it does then great if not rep the OP for finding a slickdeal and keep on truckin.

[zad225]

I don't want to sound negative about this product, because I've never had one, but I did have the NEC 900 which is a very similar product to this one. The NEC 900 keyboard is just a little bit bigger, whic was already cramped enough for me. Since this product was being compared to newer netbooks, let me give you the lowdown before anyone decides on purchasing this product.

First, this computer runs Windows CE 3.0, not xp or even linux, which netbooks are running these days. This makes finding programs for this very, very difficult. So, please keep that in mind. You'll have a lot easier time finding programs for Pocket PC than you would for a handheld that runs CE 3.0.

Second, this does not have WIFI built in. And even if you are able to spend the necessary amount to attach a wifi card, your internet experience will be very disappointing. The resolution is much too low for internet browsing.

Third, if you want to use this sucker for just word processing, realize that when you sync a word document to it, that it will lose most if not all of its formatting.

I'm just passing this along to help out with this decision. I agree, it seems like a good price, but to compare it to netbooks that are out now, is really unfair. Yes, it's smaller, but what you sacrifice is compatibility and usability, which in the long run, will make you wishing that you never made the purchase. Trust me, I made a similar mistake.

[Calesta]

Thanks rj.

Zad, I agree with you 100%. If I was looking for something to be super portable and carry around, I would get an eee. Hell, I do just fine on my iPhone in a pinch. I wouldn't want to use this thing to get online. That's what I'm trying to discourage.

Software- I thought there was a ton of it floating around? I'm not too worried about it since it should work fine for its intended purpose right out of the box, but if I find a few gems I might add them.

I wasn't aware about the formatting loss after a sync, but I've never had luck with formatting when going from a portable to a full-size machine. Considering that the other device under consideration was something that was basically a large Palm V with a chunky keyboard attached to it, I'm sure that whatever formatting is retained with the Jornada has to be at least as good. The spousal unit isn't going to do any final editing on a portable anyway, so it won't matter. All she needs is a text entry unit that's portable enough to capture thoughts and stories as she thinks of them no matter where she happens to be. For me, I just come up with short thoughts and jot them down in my old Palm or now on my iPhone. She has brain diarrhea on the scale of several book chapters at a time, so a traditional PDA won't work for her, and a netbook is still too big.

Thanks for the input though!

Need PDA type functions, get a PDA
Need good portable internet plus full compatibility with existing system, get a netbook
Need the smallest device with a keyboard attached to it and decent battery life but bar getting online, get this thing

[dannomite]

anyone know if the OS on this thing is stable? i don't want it crashing on me randomly.

[KenSimone]

If you're considering this, you might want to also check out the nokia internet tablets (770, n800, n810). They're roughly the same form factor as this. The Nokia 770 can be had for < $100 bucks on ebay used. I picked up an n810 for $119 and love it. The Nokia tablets are a few years newer and are a lot more powerful.

[dannomite]

Quote from KenSimone : If you're considering this, you might want to also check out the nokia internet tablets (770, n800, n810). They're roughly the same form factor as this. The Nokia 770 can be had for < $100 bucks on ebay used. I picked up an n810 for $119 and love it. The Nokia tablets are a few years newer and are a lot more powerful.

woah, n810 for 119? used off of ebay? that's super cheap.

[thewrongstuff]

Quote from defiantroa : iPHONE!

HAHA! Like somebody who owns an Iphone could actually write a novel. You made my day!

[sxy2003]

Only way to connect is 56K modem?
welcome to 1985 enjoy your stay.

[Calesta]

Update- so far so good. The wife has adapted to the keyboard, and is happily typing away whenever she feels the writing bug bite. She loves the size.

Quote from dannomite : anyone know if the OS on this thing is stable? i don't want it crashing on me randomly.

No problems so far.

Quote from KenSimone : If you're considering this, you might want to also check out the nokia internet tablets (770, n800, n810). They're roughly the same form factor as this. The Nokia 770 can be had for < $100 bucks on ebay used. I picked up an n810 for $119 and love it. The Nokia tablets are a few years newer and are a lot more powerful.

Time to go look and possibly spend/waste more money...

Quote from thewrongstuff : HAHA! Like somebody who owns an Iphone could actually write a novel. You made my day!

Quote from sxy2003 : Only way to connect is 56K modem? welcome to 1985 enjoy your stay.

Buy a netbook.

56k wasn't available until 1998. 1985 was more the 9600 baud days... plus the weirdo 18.4k modems. I was on my trusty Hayes 2400 back then. Love those BBSs!

[dannomite]

Quote from Calesta : Update- so far so good. The wife has adapted to the keyboard, and is happily typing away whenever she feels the writing bug bite. She loves the size. No problems so far. Time to go look and possibly spend/waste more money... Buy a netbook. 56k wasn't available until 1998. 1985 was more the 9600 baud days... plus the weirdo 18.4k modems. I was on my trusty Hayes 2400 back then. Love those BBSs!

What kind of battery life are you getting on it?

[Calesta]

Sorry for the super late reply.

We really haven't had a chance to test the battery life since we keep jumping hotel rooms back and forth, but it's lasted for at least 6-7 hours in a stretch without any issues at all.

But it turns out that she wanted in on the Mini9 deal posted today, so the 728 is now for sale again. I'll throw in a Transcend 4GB CF card that I bought for it too if anyone wants to buy the whole set.

[aaronwms]

It was once my dream PDA/handheld PC YEARS ago. For now, I wonder what can you do with this cause it does not come with a wifi built-in. Yes, it has a PCMCIA slot, but it is a kind of inconvenience.
However, for this kind of price, it is still a good deal if you do not mind to pay for something which you won't use - cause you don't know what to use!

[Calesta]

Yeah- I think she would still have used it, but the Mini is nicer, and neither still fits in her new miniscule purse. Buying her the cheapo Mini gives me the excuse to get the 1000HE too.

[HustlerNutsch]

I had one of these. Super cool... Well I thought so. Girlfriend hated it i remember... I had a wireless orinoco card for it and got wireless b access where available. As I said really cool but they are slow... HPCFactor.com tons of info on compatibility and whatnot.