Psion 5MX and HP Jornada

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I wrote these reviews in the Spring of 2000.

Psion 5MX

In a nutshell

What does it do? Just about everything - word processing, spreadsheets, web browsing, diaries, address book and to-do lists. Plus a vast array of third party software.

Why buy one? If you want a small, neat system that you can touch type on. Good manual and technical support.

Why not? If an effective PC link is critical.

The whole story

Opening a new box with a cool gadget inside it is like opening a Christmas present. The 5MX (£350 excl. VAT street price) came in one of the best-designed and most attractive gadget packages I have seen and one of the best designed gadgets inside the box. British Airways sell these through their in-flight duty free catalogue - I have often been tempted to buy one and if I had seen the box I probably would have done.

The machine itself is small, neat and cleverly designed. The keyboard folds out like origami and is just about big enough to touch-type on. The software is presented well on the large screen - the graphics and user interface are good and clear. In particular the spreadsheet and word processor are very good and embarrass the ones provided on Windows CE machines with their sophistication. The voice recording option is actually usable with buttons and microphone on the outside of the case so you don't need to open it up to dictate. It has good speakers too. At full volume, playback is very audible and the alarm is loud - very loud. I had to get up and leave a meeting to turn it off even though it was in the next room. I also liked the fact that it ran for a long time on standard AA batteries and that it plugs into your PC via a simple cable and not a clunking great docking port.

Like a Christmas present, though, once you unwrap it and start playing with it, shortcomings become apparent. The screen is difficult to read. This is not because of the layout or poor backlighting, both of which are very good, but because the screen is very reflective. In some lighting conditions it is almost unreadable. Although it has a web browser and Internet email capabilities built in, it does not have an internal modem. This means that you have to carry about an external modem to dial up. I like to travel light - ideally one single (very fat) bag - so every extra gizmo and cable is extra weight and extra hassle. Its biggest drawback, however, was the software that synchronised it my PC. In contrast to the Windows CE PC software, it is struggle to install and use. Perhaps it's just me, but it only connected to the Psion about 30% of the time and there were parts of the software I simply couldn't make work at all.

It sounds trivial, but more than anything else, with the Psion I really looked forward to taking notes in meetings and then easily uploading them to the PC. At the moment, I write them manually in a notebook and then transcribed them to the PC. However, the problems with the software made it more effort to use the Psion than to do it the old fashioned way. I think with effort and improved PC software the Psion could become an invaluable companion. More than any other system I reviewed, I wanted it to work out for me. I wanted to buy one. It enthralled me at first, but after two weeks, I was pleased to give it back and save myself the frustration and time of trying to make it work properly. The lesson of the Psion is that to be valuable, this type of system must, above all else, be easy and reliable to use and not just whizzy-clever.

Co-ordinates

www.psion.com is the main corporate website, but the 5MX has it's own, excellent web page at http://www.series5mx.com/.

HP Jornada 680

In a nutshell

What does it do? Microsoft Office in miniature; web browsing and email.

Why buy one? Windows familiarity, easy PC synchronisation

Why not? Big and bulky; quite pricey.

The whole story

The HP Jornada 680 (£450 excl. VAT approximate street price) is almost the exact opposite of the Psion 5MX. It's case looks like two small computers were melted together in a microwave with bulbous shapes bulging out in all directions. It plugs into a large desktop docking station which doesn't really do anything that the Psion's simple data cable doesn't do except occupy a large amount of desk space. It is also heavier and slightly larger than the Psion. My biggest gripe with it is the fact that it doesn't run on standard batteries, instead relying on an internal rechargeable which can be a problem when travelling.

In it's favour are the excellent screen; a good keyboard, although this is always a personal choice; good built in software including Pocket Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook and Access; and a built-in modem to connect to the Internet and email. I was able to use it to work on several bits of work and these were synchronised back onto my desktop PC seamlessly.

I have used a Toshiba Libretto for the past couple of years as my main portable. It is about the size of a paperback book. Into this space it packs a fully functioning Windows 95 laptop with a generous hard disk and PC card slot for a modem. I think that the Jornada is the first hand-held PC that could replace the Libretto, which is quite an achievement. If it did, it would bring the luxury of switching on and off immediately, rather than waiting for Windows to load each time. It would also have a longer battery life.

If someone could put the HP's functionality into the Psion's case and make it run on AA batteries, it would be the machine of my dreams.

Co-ordinates

The Jornada site is at http://www.hp.com/jornada/products/680/overview.html.