SmartPad2

[MichaelButler]

I am having a difficult time deciding on the appropriate device to use for input; see I take copious amounts of notes and need something quick and effiecient. Has anyone used this smart pad, and if so, does it work well?

I am, basically, not HTML savy, but here is a link to cut and paste..

http://www.seikosmart.com/products/sp582.html

[MichaelButler]

I'm guessing nobody has used this? Well, I just purchased a keyboard instead.

[hiswacko]

i took a look at the site, and it looks like a whole lot of nothing. first, alot of the shown in the picture is for other devices(ipac, hanspring). theres a spot for a cell phone, and a pen slot. that the side with the palm. on the other side of this case, theres just a big touchpad, kind of a blown up palm digitizer with a permanent on screen keyboard. if you want to write stuff in manually(complete idiocy if your entering allot, nut if you wish) then u have a bigger space to write(i presume). but that keyboard doesnt look like much. it says it for pecking at with a pen. that means its too small to type on. so all that bulk and money just buys you a larger digitizer.

for 125 dollars, this looks like a rippoff. i would just buy a case(around 5-10 dollars, there are all sorts of types) and the 75 dollar palm keyboard. its cheaper, it probably works better, is easier, and is almost as fast to setup. i cannot mannually write, and thus i have used computers for everything i do in school since fourth grade. and if your gonna be putting allot of info into your palm, your gonna want a decent size keyboard, one big enough to type on. it might be low going at first if you dont type much, but if you enter all your notes with the keyboard u will probably be typing as fast as you write after a week or 2.

if you have any more questions, fell free to post them here or email me at hiswacko2@juno.com , ill be happy to help.

[MichaelButler]

Well, being a grad student, I have become quite proficent at taking notes, and I thought this may be able to receive input similar to just writing on a peice of paper. But, like you said, it appears to be a bunch of nothing; however, I had hoped that someone may have tried it. Anyhow, I cannot type worth a ****, and refuse to learn, lol. Anyhow, thanks for the advice, for I was just looking for some opinions. So thanks...

[hiswacko]

i was never taught to type. i have friends who took month long sumerschool classes on typing, and i type faster than them. but i never used a typing teacher program, i most definitely do not type like a typist.

i learned to type the same way i learned to use the computer, i just tried. if u just sit and explore on a computer, you will learn allot. the same thing goes for typing. if u just use it for a little while, you will get good. you wont be as fast as a typist, but you will be much faster than writing.

if you are looking for something to simulate writing on paper for the palm(this is my main problem with palms-why pay 500 dollars for a frustrating technological device that is made to simulate a pad of paper? but i guess if youre used to writing..............) there are some much better options. first of all, if you are jst looking for a paper feel, you can buy a screenprotector. i bought a brando screen protector as suggested by many people on this site, and it does indeed fell somewhat like writing on paper(just remember to take the interchangeable cover off before you trim it down, im probably gonna have to buy a new one now). if you want a big writing surface, i believe there are one for the palm that are better and cheaper then that big bulky case. ive seen them, but as i dont write i dont know a thing about them. time for somebody else to post who knows about them.

[MichaelButler]

well, I just want something that can read my notes in call and be transfered into word format when I get home; rather than having to retype everything

[hiswacko]

there is software out there that can do that! you need a flatbed scanner, and the software will take a scanned image of your notes, and convert it to a document. i saw this first at a technologyconference for the disabled, being geared to the blind as a way to hear text(the program can also talk in one of those robotic voic es). i havve no idea what happenedf to these programs,but they are out there. there is even a device that hooks onto the sides of a whiteboard and digitizes what the teacher writes, for the lazy people who dont like to take notes(i was so close to getting one).

[redaudi]

I read a review of this product at http://www.vnunet.com/Products/Hardware/1125561
The idea seems intriguing but the reviews are not great.The idea is that you draw or write on the paper and the device somehow shoots this into the palm
I considered this product for quickly drawing room plans while talking to clients in my job as an Electrician.It would look authoratative, as opposed to just taping away at your palm which might be seen as ignoring the client.
Bye the way paying $125 for this in the U.S is a much better deal than the ?169 we would be stung for it in The U.K