Dear user,

Here are my opinions on the current state of play within the palmtop
market, and which platform you should choose if you are buying a new
palmtop machine.

Just so we know what we are talking about, you should know that there
are currently three platforms you could choose when buying a new palmtop
computer - EPOC, PalmOS, & PocketPC.

EPOC machines include the Psion Revo+, the Psion Series 5 & 7, the
Ericsson MC218, the Oregon Osaris, the Diamond Mako, the Geofox One,
and the netBook.

Palm OS machines include the Palm 3, Palm 5, Palm m105, Palm m125,
Palm m500, Palm m505, Palm TRGPro, Sony Clie, Handera 330, and all of
the Handspring Visor machines (Delux / Neo / Edge / Platinum / Prism).

PocketPC machines include the Compaq iPaq, and the HP Journada machines
of which there are a few with varying specifications.


So, which machine should you choose - I think the answer depends on
what you want from your machine.

The Psion S5 / Revo / Mako are really wonderful machines with a wealth
of good built in software.  Even if you used just the built in software
and bought nothing else, its functionality would be great.  I use the
built in Contacts, Diary, Jotter Pad, Database, Alarm Clock, and Email
applications on a daily basis.  In general, if you want to make the
best use of your Palm or PocketPC machine you will need to buy third
party software because the built in stuff isn't advanced enough.

The medical software available for the different platforms is quite
variable.  The EPOC / Psion platform has a number of very advanced
patient management and medical calculation programs.  These are usually
better than the equivalent programs on the Palm & PocketPC machines.
The place where the EPOC platform is lacking is in medical etexts.
The Merck Manual & the 5 Minute Clinical Consult (along with a number of
other texts) are both available for Palm & PocketPC, but aren't available
on the EPOC platform.

Another reason why I have so far kept away from the Palm and PocketPC
machines is the lack of a keyboard.  I have to enter large amounts of
data on the move.  I am frequently writing long letters, creating new
databases, entering notes about my current patients, and programming
whilst on the move.  I have tried to use the graffiti script to enter
information using Palms which people have lent me, and the most I can
get is about 8 words per minute (I suspect that more experienced people
could do 15/wpm).  On my Revo / Mako I can type with two thumbs at
a speed of about 40 words per minute.  For me, the keyboard is essential.

The screens are different between Psions and Palms / PocketPCs.
The screen of the Revo / Series 5 is wide enough to view documents in
roughly the same way as you would on your PC.  The screen of the Palm
or PocketPC machines is not as wide, and in my opinion a large number
of applications suffer because of it.  Wordprocessor documents, Databases
and Internet pages all have to be reformated to fit on the smaller screen
and it certainly makes it more difficult to browse and navigate the
programs.  The bottom of the Palm / PocketPC screen is dedicated to
entering information using a type of simplified script called 'graffiti'.
You can't use this part of the screen for anything else, and this
makes the useable area even smaller than it would otherwise be.
Some PocketPC machines do have the ability to recognise cursive
handwriting, but the recognition is not perfect and there are always
mistakes to go back and correct.

The Palms and in particular the PocketPC machines are starting to have
a number of extra features which I personally consider to be gimmicks.
These things include colour screens, the ability to play MPEG and MP3
files, and some other multimedia functions.  I have never needed my
palmtop to do these things, but you may feel different.

The subject of 'Synchronisation' is also an area of contrast between the
machines.  All platforms allow you to backup your data to a PC or Mac,
but the Palm and in particular the PocketPC machines allow you to do this
very much more seamlessly.  PocketPC machines make it especially easy to
convert wordprocessor documents, Databases, Spreadsheets, and even
Powerpoint presentations to the equivalent files on your PC.  Palm
and PocketPC synchronisation is usually much faster because they use
a USB interface, whereas the EPOC machines are still using the slower
RS232 serial interface.

My understanding of the palmtop market is that worldwide, Psion's share
is 15%, Palms share is 45%, and PockePC's share is 40%, but is it expected
that PocketPC will overtake the Palm in a major way over the next year
or two.

To find all the best medical software for Psions / EPOC, you should
take a look at the following websites ...

http://www.palmaris.com       (Commercial Medical Software)
http://www.jwolfe.clara.net   (Freeware Medical Software)

To find all the best medical software for Palms / PocketPC's, you
should take a look at these websites ...

http://handheldmed.com/         (Commercial Medical Software)
http://www.pdamd.com/           (Commercial Medical Software)

The following websites cater for all platforms and are very good ...

http://www.memoware.com/        (Freeware Medical Databases)
http://easynet.pda.tucows.com/  (Freeware Medical Software)

The final point you should consider is the future development of
the platform, and the presence of support if you run into problems.
It is my opinion that the PocketPC has got good long term prospects.
The Palm platform has good medium term prospects, and may even survive
into the long term, but I'm not sure.

You may have heard that Psion recently pulled out of the consumer
palmtop market.  This means (for the time being) that they are not
developing new machines, and as a result most of the people who write
software for the EPOC platform are also not continuing development of
software at the moment.  At the time Psion pulled out of the market,
they were almost ready to release a new machine which was like previous
ones, but had in addition built in mobile internet access and Bluetooth
functionality.  Assuming that the market for Bluetooth devices improves
(which is is surely likely to), then Psion *may* re-enter the palmtop
market and development of new machines and software will continue where
it left off, but this is by no means a certainty.

For your final decision, you will have to weigh up all the facts above.
If you are satisfied to use your machine as a glorified diary, if it is
important to you to keep commercial medical etexts on your machine for
reference, and if you are not intending to enter large amounts of information
onto your machine, then the Palm or PocketPC machines should be fine for you.

If you need to have a keyboard, enter lots of information on the move,
and you really need a 'portable computer' rather than just an 'organiser'
then an EPOC / Psion / Diamond machine is the one for you.  As you can
see, my description above has been a little biased in favour of the EPOC
platform, but I am a 'power user' myself and my Psion Revo does everything
I could want of it.  In comparison, if I tried to do everything I currently
do on a Palm / PocketPC, then I know that I would find these machines
woefully inadequate.  That's just me though!!

I hope this helps.

PS: The Diamond Mako is the American version of the Revo+, and is currently
available for $99 - Thats £60!!!!!  That's stonking good value for money.

Jason
--
Dr Jason Wolfe
www.jwolfe.clara.net