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(More customer reviews)I read the customer comments here before I bought my Jornada 720 and found them useful. So I'll return the favor by writing my own feedback for those still shopping around.
Some of you are probably asking the same questions...Palm or Windows? Keyboard or handwriting recognition? Built-in keyboard or stowaway? E-mail or no e-mail? Compaq Ipaq or HP Jornada 720?
I cannot answer all the questions for you, but as a non-techie person, here's how I made my decision. Let's start with the easiest question: Keyboard or handwriting?
I think most people are faster typists than they are writing long hand. This is why we went from drawing on cave walls, to writing on paper, to typing with a manual typewriter, to typing with computers, and to voice recognition. Do you see a pattern here? It's called evolution. I see handwriting recognition as going backwards. People assume that handwriting recognition works as smoothly as touted. It doesn't and it is terribly frustrating. Sooner or later, you'll need a keyboard, which is why most people with palm or pocket PCs still buy keyboards. Think about it. If you need to write more than one paragraph, say a 3-page article, letter, or report, would you rather handwrite or type? Ask the many writers who use the J720 if they'd rather handwrite their stories and they'll think you've gone nuts.
Okay, so you're one of those people who like handwriting too much to give up on it. Enter the J720's Inkwriter. It's like a pad of paper that you can scribble anything on and then save it. Even longhand. Draw things on it (your house plan?), or play tic-tac-toe on it, or scribble the hastily dictated phone number of the cute guy you just met. Or pretend to make handwritten notes to keep awake during boring office meetings.
Next question. Built-in or stowaway keyboard? If you follow the reasoning for wanting keyboard over handwriting, you'll realize the only way to avoid the frustration of handwriting is to have a keyboard 24 hrs a day, 7 days a week. And if you need it that much, then it makes sense for it to be built-in. Of course, you could buy a Compaq Ipaq and carry the keyboard separately. But why punish yourself?
Palm or Windows? Personally, I hate learning new ways of doing things unless they improve on how I already do it. I'm familiar with the Windows platform. I use it in the office, I use it at home, and I use it on my PDA. I'm going for consistency. This OS rivalry reminds me of the Mac vs. PC and the Betamax vs.VCR (I'm dating myself). If you travel abroad frequently, you will soon discover that the rest of the world has learned to go with a safe bet. They will not waste limited dollars on something that might be obsolete in a matter of years. You can call it cattle mentality, but they see it as safety in numbers (i.e., the millions of Windows users worldwide).
Why not a laptop? Well, I already have a lightweight laptop at home which I plan to keep. But there is no laptop in the market today that is lighter than a PDA. I can go anywhere with my J720 and do practically everything that I need my laptop for. The J720's instant on/off feature alone is enough to convince me to leave the laptop at home. Cheaper than a laptop, better battery life, no need to boot up, blazingly fast, extremely lightweight and portable, and easy to pack (not a space hog). I've had the J720 for almost two months and has brought it on trips already (bravely left the laptop at home). The only thing I missed was the backache I would have gotten from lugging the laptop. Actually, make that two. I missed the paranoid feeling that someone might steal my laptop when it's out of my sight because I can't stash it in a pocket, purse, or hotel safe. In sum, I don't need a second laptop and the one I have will stay home from now on.
Pricewise, there's not much difference between a Compaq Ipaq and J720 after you factor in the added costs (for Ipaq) of a separate keyboard and something else (modem?) that the guy in the store told me but which I forgot. He said the J720 is about $100 more expensive than the Ipaq. And there are discounts if you want to spend the time finding them. However, the J720 is not for you if all you need is a gadget to store addresses and phone numbers. It'd be the equivalent of buying an expensive sportscar only to drive it at a top speed of 35 mph for a daily 5-mile commute. What a waste. Get those cheap and common calculator-like gadgets for $150. But if you want a PDA/organizer that can be a mini-laptop, this is it.
Sizewise, the J720 is slightly bigger than the Ipaq but still small enough to fit into a small purse. In fact, I was surprised at how small it was when I finally got it. I eyeballed the size based on the specifications given. It turned out to be smaller, which was what I wanted. If you buy a pocket PC or palm organizer and then carry the separate keyboard, the whole package will be bigger and bulkier than the J720.
The J720's screen is almost twice wider than the Ipaq's or other pocketpcs. This eliminates the annoyance of having to scroll left-right-top-bottom when looking at documents. Not a noticeable difference if all you do is look up addresses or phone numbers. But when you're working on a Word or Excel document (PocketWord/Pocket Excel), reading e-mail, or browsing the web, you will be glad your J720 has a wider screen. And because the J720 has a clamshell design (the screen closes/folds over the keyboard), you don't have to spend the extra $$ for a leather case to protect the screen.
By now - if you're still reading - you're probably wondering if there's anything I dislike at all about this gadget. Yes. It bugs me that the J720 doesn't have a latch to snap it close. Don't get me wrong... it does close, but I miss the comforting "click" sound of a latch. I almost returned the darn thing. But I was assured that the hinge has a wheel mechanism designed to withstand repeated opening and closing of the lid.
Also, the keyboard seemed tiny at first, but after a week of typing on it, it felt very comfortable for touch-typing documents, spreadsheets, etc. But if you're planning to write your first great American novel, you'll be pushing the limits of the keyboard (and your fingers). Do yourself a favor and write your magnum opus on a desktop or full-size laptop. If you want to work just a chapter at a time, the J720 will do. Still leaps and bounds over handwriting.
Lastly, it bugs me that the J720 comes only in one boring, unimaginative, dark blue grayish corporate color. I would have gladly chosen a more pretty-looking gadget (there's plenty out there), but the J720 beats them where it matters the most to me -- substance. The J720 is still a bargain for what it delivers. But would it be asking too much to want it in red?
There's my 2 cents' worth. By the way, I'm typing this on my J720's built-in keyboard. Would I handwrite this? No way! Would you?
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Hewlett Packard Jornada 720 Handheld PCThe HP Jornada 720 Handheld PC package includes the following items:HP Jornada 720 (HP F1816A)Docking cradle, ac adapter and serial sync cableLithium ion rechargeable batteryGuides:HP Jornada handheld PC user's guideHP Jornada accessories guideSoftware:One Microsoft (R) compact disc containing Microsoft ActiveSync and Microsoft Outlook 2000
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