Palm PDA Swaps Storage for Wi-Fi

Palm's new TX sacrifices some of the storage and processing power of its predecessor, the Tungsten T5, in exchange for Wi-Fi and a lower price. The end result: more features for the buck.

Aside from its darker case and slightly brighter screen, the TX looks and feels like the T5. The $299 TX has 128MB of total memory, half that of the T5, and only about 100MB of it is user accessible. Unlike the T5, the TX comes with memory that can store only Palm-supported files and Microsoft Office documents.

In my tests the TX's integrated 802.11b Wi-Fi functioned very well. I connected to PC World's Wi-Fi network, pressed the browser button, and surfed the Web at a reasonable speed, and I also sent e-mail using the preinstalled Palm VersaMail 3.1c.

Though the TX allows you to use Bluetooth to send SMS text messages via your mobile phone, I had mixed results with this capability: I successfully sent a text message via an unlocked Palm Treo 650 using T-Mobile, but I failed when I tried using a Cingular-enabled Motorola unit.

I used the preinstalled Pocket Tunes application for transferring and playing MP3 (but not WMA) files on the TX. When I transferred music from Windows Media Player 10, Pocket Tunes worked seamlessly. When I tried to sync Pocket Tunes with Rhapsody Jukebox, I experienced some bugs. The easiest way to transfer music, though, is by using Palm's Quick Install to drag files onto an SD Card.

With the TX, Palm offers Wi-Fi and a lower price in return for reduced power and less storage. For people who don't mind that compromise, the trade-off is worth it.