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Top 10 PDAs

New Windows Mobile units take top places.

Rebecca Freed

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H4150 Pocket PC (HP (Hewlett-Packard)-FA174A) PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated: June 07, 2004

1. HP H4150 Pocket PC (HP (Hewlett-Packard)-FA174A)

Microsoft Windows Mobile 2003 OS, Stylus input, 240-by-320-pixel color screen, 64MB of RAM, SD/SDIO slot, Price when ranked: $449

Bottom Line: Small, light Pocket PC has all the connectivity options you could want, and it handles wireless networking gracefully. Comes with an easy-to-use photo editor.

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MyPal A716 PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated: June 07, 2004

2. Asus MyPal A716

Microsoft Windows Mobile 2003 OS, Stylus input, 240-by-320-pixel color screen, 64MB of RAM, SD and CompactFlash II slots, Price when ranked: $415

Bottom Line: This chunky unit is loaded with memory, slots, and communications options--but some applications, like its Wi-Fi utility, need polishing.

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IPAQ H4350 PDA (HP (Hewlett-Packard)-FA172A) PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated:

3. HP IPAQ H4350 PDA (HP (Hewlett-Packard)-FA172A)

Microsoft Windows Mobile 2003 OS, Stylus and thumb-keyboard input, 240-by-320-pixel color screen, 64MB of RAM, SD/SDIO slot, Price when ranked: $499

Bottom Line: Has one of the best-looking screens we've seen so far; the integrated thumb keyboard works well but adds some bulk.

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Pocket PC e405 PDA PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated:

4. Toshiba Pocket PC e405 PDA

Microsoft Windows Mobile 2003 OS, Stylus input, 240-by-320-pixel color screen, 64MB of RAM, SD/SDIO slot, Price when ranked: $299

Bottom Line: Moderately priced business PDA has an elegant design, a useful launch page, and handy software extras, but its process for installing software would benefit from being made a lot smoother.

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Sony Clie PEG-TH55 Color Handheld PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated: June 04, 2004

5. Sony Sony Clie PEG-TH55 Color Handheld

Palm OS 5.2, Stylus input, 320-by-480-pixel color screen, 32MB of RAM, Memory Stick Pro slot, Price when ranked: $400

Bottom Line: Sony's latest Palm-based unit is lovely to look at and a pleasure to hold, and it comes with loads of extra applications, but Sony's software overlay on the Palm OS isn't helpful.

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Pocket PC E800 PDA PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated: June 07, 2004

6. Toshiba Pocket PC E800 PDA

Microsoft Windows Mobile 2003 OS, Stylus input, 240-by-320-pixel color screen, 128MB of RAM, SD/SDIO and CompactFlash II slots, Price when ranked: $599

Bottom Line: The priciest model here, the E800 comes with presentation software that lets road warriors leave their notebooks home. Connecting to a Wi-Fi network took only a couple of clicks.

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Zire 72 PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated: June 07, 2004

7. Palm Zire 72

Palm OS 5.2.8, Stylus input, 320-by-320 pixel color screen, 32MB of RAM, SD/SDIO slot, Price when ranked: $299

Bottom Line: Compact and attractively priced for a Bluetooth PDA; has just about everything you need for productivity and fun--but some features, like the Real music player, could be easier to use.

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Tungsten E PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated: June 07, 2004

8. Palm Tungsten E

Palm OS 5.2.1, Stylus input, 320-by-320-pixel color screen, 32MB of RAM, SD/SDIO slot, Price when ranked: $199

Bottom Line: This entry-level business Palm has a bright, especially readable screen and a generous software bundle. Files must be added to an SD Card via the Palm Desktop in order to be recognized, which is irritating.

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Tungsten C PDA (Palm Computing-P80900US) PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated:

9. Palm Tungsten C PDA (Palm Computing-P80900US)

Palm OS 5.2.1, Stylus and thumb-keyboard input, 320-by-320-pixel color screen, 64MB of RAM, SD/SDIO slot, Price when ranked: $399

Bottom Line: The only PDA from PalmOne (other than the Treo) that has a thumb keyboard. It lacks Wi-Fi-capable competitors' voice recording, Bluetooth connectivity, and enterprise-worthy support.

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Zire 31 PCW Rating: PCW Rating: PCW Rating:

Last Rated: June 04, 2004

10. Palm Zire 31

Palm OS 5.2.8, Stylus input, 160-by-160-pixel color screen, 16MB of RAM, SD/SDIO slot, Price when ranked: $149

Bottom Line: Follow-on to the entry-level Zire 21 adds a faster ARM processor, a good-looking (though low-resolution) color screen, a stereo headphone jack, and a built-in digital music player (which requires an SD Card to use).

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For phone/PDA hybrids, listed price is the typical purchase cost with a new mobile phone service plan, excluding limited-term special offers. All screens are color, unless noted. For each category, ratings are based on price (30 percent), features (40 percent), ease of use (20 percent), and support policies (10 percent).

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