Help PalmOS users: are you glad you switched to Moment?

[jeffdlb]

I'm a long-time PalmOS user and my current phone (Centro/Sprint) is still working, so I'm on the fence about whether to buy a Moment now and suffer the migration hassle, or wait until my existing phone really dies.

If you made the switch, are you glad you did? Were the additional features of the Moment and Android 1.5 worth its limitations in other areas?

 

[ALooneyGuy]

Well, I went through the same dilemma about 2 weeks ago, and went ahead and threw down for the Moment. I won't say I never looked back, because there are definitely things I miss about the Centro. I really don't use my phone to talk on that much, so as far as that part goes, as long as I can place and answer calls, I'm fine. I'm finding that the radio on the Moment is a bit weaker, as I often have little or no signal at work. That was occasionally a problem with the Centro, but not nearly as often. The battery on the Moment really sucks. I think I'm having problems with it at work because of the constant switching between EVDO and 1x as the weak radio searches for a signal. At home, I have been using data a lot to install apps and play around, so I really haven't had a "normal use" day yet to judge the battery away from work. However, I suspect that I'll still not be able to get close to a full day's use without charging. Getting an extra battery or plugging it in when not in use are options. The main other thing I miss is my Slingplayer. I knew that going in, so I chose that problem. However, I'm quite confident that there will be an Android client eventually.

Having said all that, I really like the Moment in general, and Android specifically. There are tons of applications available, many of them free, that make me realize it was definitely time to jump off the PalmOS bandwagon. For instance, the onscreen keyboard of the HTC Hero is far superior to the one on the Moment. So...I downloaded and installed it, and it works much better. It's fun to be out in front of something instead of trying to keep my old technology on life support. I don't think there will ever be one singular IPhone killer, but the explosive growth of Android and the variety of devices available that use it are definitely going to up the ante.

 

[CTS]

I traded up from a Centro to a Moment a couple of weeks ago. The battery issue is something to think about--I'm astounded that I often can't get through a day without the battery running down.

OTOH, the leap forward is nothing short of amazing. I have a blog, so I needed to be able to edit it on my phone--the Palm's browser was not up to the job and doesn't even LOOK like a browser in comparison to the Moment's. WiFi is great to have, too.

The Palm's organization features are formidable, but I've switched to an app called Astrid and the web site Remember the Milk (they sync), and I think the system is better than Palm's.

With a car charger, I'm looking forward to using the turn-by-turn directions (amazing but a battery-killer). The world of apps is something to behold, but you're right to be thinking about core functionality over flash.

I think it depends how into the Web you are--if you want to experience the Web as it is on a computer, you should move up.

 

[ColdStart]

Yes, I really like the moment. there are some things I miss from the Centro, but the pluses of the Moment outweigh them. Certainly don't miss that awful small screen & tiny keyboard.

 

[dbpaddler]

No. PIM sucks and the actual phone functionality is just OK. As much as I like the big screen, touch and all that, it's really all fluff. I greatly miss the core PIM functionality that was second to none in PalmOS. Funny thing is even Palm f'd it up in WebOS. Everyone is so impressed at all these new things they can do it seems they're willing to put up with the actual smartphone shortcomings. But that's just me. I'm also tired of the apologists telling me I miss the beauty of the OS and need to look to 3rd parties to customize to get the missing things back. Sorry. That doesn't cut it, especially when 3rd party solutions aren't as good and quite a few slow down the phone. And I wish Palm and Google would stop catering to the dumbphone crowd and fix the issues the smartphone users seem to miss and complain about most which is evidenced by threads all throughout android, google and palm forums.

Outside of that, the phone is fun. Media, the web, messaging and such is much more dynamic. Putting my agenda on the home screen via calwidget or purecal is very convenient. Other convenience type things are nice. Visual voicemail is very nice, but now force closes all the time since I've done the CL14 update.

 

[thenrik]

Hi:

I'm a two device person. I use my Palm T/X for PIM, Palm Fiction and all the palm apps I love. I never bought a palm phone and might not have bought the moment but after AvantGo and Vindigo threw in the towel, I had to go somewhere for web content on the go.

With the Moment and the T/X, I get to have my cake and eat it to. I have the stability of the palm, NVbackup etc. My data is safe.

The Moment is just gravy--a lot of fun. Like Palm, the power of Android is from multitudes of third-party developers. Like Palm, this forum feels like 1src. Like Palm, users are hacking into the system and making improvements. Android is like the wild-wild west with apps, good, bad and dangerous.

Palm had already stopped supporting its own OS when the T/X came out and the hardware can only go so far. It's fun to be working with a developing OS with a lot of user energy.

The battery life is terrible--I bought a Kensington portable charger. There are still problems backing up. I don't regret buying the Moment at all. It works as a phone, free after 7pm, free mobile to mobile, lots of minutes and a wonderland of apps and web stuff to explore.

I highly recommend it.

Tom

 

[Eaglesfan9106]

Forget the zero get a hero

 

[dbpaddler]

umm....tom. You didn't switch. So you can't highly recommend it because you're still using the T/X. You kinda make the point against getting it.

Eaglesfan, you're in the wrong forum.

 

[thenrik]

Hi:

All of the new fun media developments, web developments and for that matter any developments are not going to come to any Palm device--taken as a given that WebOS has nothing to do with Palm.

Moving forward, you're going to need something new. If Android matures its PIM software, I'll drop the T/X but I still stand behind what I said--get the Moment.

Tom

 

[dbpaddler]

but that's kinda my point. you're not switching. you're using two devices because the one lacks the functionality you need in an every day device.

 

[thenrik]

Hi:

I had a dumb cell phone and a T/X and now I have a Smart phone and a T/X. I don't know of any single device that has the capabilities I need but the Moment is the only one that comes close.

Tom

 

[AndroidSPCS]

I am a long long time Palm user and now am so glad I moved forward.

My last Palm device was the Palm Centro. While I liked Palm desktop, it was astoundingly amazing that I had no "search" functionality in the Palm contacts on the Centro.

Some people say the PIM on Android sucks. I wonder why??? The calendar works great, I sync it offline to Sunbird and have an offline version. I also enjoy having my contacts in gmail. I export it to .xls and then sync it to Kurlo so I have an offline version of that. I have a "task" list from Gmail, and also a task list from "Remember the Milk" & "Astrid". So I have all the essential functions of the PIM and much better web browsing than the Centro.

So no regrets switching from Palm.

 

[jeffdlb]

I had no "search" functionality in the Palm contacts on the Centro.

What do you mean by that? The Centro search feature (white option key + magnifying glass) searches contacts and other apps. If you're in contacts, it will search that first. Also, if you start typing a contact name it will narrow down the list to matching entries.

 

[dbpaddler]

all palms would do that. It'd even break it down by what app the info was found in. It's amazing the things PalmOS did that people would fawn over when it was finally available on other phones on top of the fact people would claim it was the first to do it. People just don't know, especially the younger generation that never used a Palm, and apparently the ones developed webOS. Clueless Apple/Google oriented schmucks.

 

[jeffdlb]

People just don't know, especially the younger generation that never used a Palm, and apparently the ones developed webOS.

Yeah, the most stunning thing is that Palm dropped so much good stuff in developing Web OS. I would buy a WebOS device without hesitation if they had made it a PalmOS++ instead of PalmOS--. Total FAIL on management's part. There are some idiots there who should be fired because they blew their chance to put Palm back on top of the PDA/Smartphone game.

 

[dbpaddler]

yep. I've been active for many years at treo and pre central. There were quite a few of us that were pretty vocal about the many steps backward they took with webOS. I'm keeping my Moment, but trading my Hero for a Pixi. Hoping it will do enough to keep the boss happy. There still seems to be some syncing bugs though which is odd because you think that would be something that gets addressed rather early in the update process. With Verizon getting the Plus versions though, I am interested in seeing what webOS 2.0 will be like and how much better 2nd gen equipment will be on Sprint. Thinking something will be leaked over the next few months.

 

[MadCap]

Came from the palm pre... web os is pretty cool and I definitely like the fact that the pre doesn't have any issues with pandora... The problem I had with the pre was the build on the phone. It was built VERY cheap and was falling apart. The slider was loose, dead pixels, etc... In general the phone felt like it was about to fall apart.

The things that I don't like about the moment are the keyboard. i like to type with one hand, with the pre that was easy... with the moment not soo much.

All in all I went with the moment because I LOVE visual voice mail and I feel that the android platform gives me more options. I'm not too thrilled with the moment but it will do until my next phone upgade in august.

 

[jeffdlb]

I was considering the Pre or Pixi, but I feel that in the long run AndroidOS has a better ecosystem (more developers, more market share) than WebOS. WebOS could have leapt into the lead if they had carried over all the PIM functionality *and* the desktop sync capability from PalmOS.

 

[CTS]

I felt (irrational) guilt at bailing on Palm and not getting a Pre, but I'd read too much about bad battery life, the stuff you mention, and the step back on to-do lists and so on.

I had trouble searching contacts on palm, too--maybe it was just me (couldn't get it to search company names and notes, just names).

As for the PIM stuff, I think Astrid plus RTM plus Google Calendar is a step forward from the old palm system. Astrid is key b/c it has an "add to calendar' function.

But it IS funny how my good old Centro could do things theMoment can't, like download pdf's. How hard can that be? (W/out a $10 dataviz app, that is?)

And I must be the only person on earth to like the Centro keyboard; except for the separate #'s line, I prefer it over the Moment's!

 

[psparky]

I was also a long time palm user (600/650/centro). I was holding out for a Pre, but hearing the stories about the hardware defects with no response from Palm was a deal breaker.

The moment has been pretty good. The keyboard took a while to get used to. It seems that I had more customization options on the centro (ex: assigning apps to buttons). K9 is a pretty good replacement for Chatteremail.

All in all, I'm glad I made the switch. The moment will be fine until something bigger/stronger/faster comes along.

k

 

[IOWA]

Im currently waiting for the HTC WiMax version of their HD2. I hope they make a qwerty version. It is rumored to run android, and coming to Sprint =D

 

[Sphagnum]

I switched from the Palm Centro to the Samsung Moment a month ago and I have yet to find anything that I did with my Centro that I can't do BETTER with my moment.

 

[dbpaddler]

so you've figured out a way to "sync" your memos back and forth from your pc to your Moment? Amazing because I've only found a way to import Palm memos via csv and that's it.

And you can create tasks on your pc and have them sync as well? (outside of exchange). How about linking contacts to appts, calls and such for reference purposes (great for sales reps)?

Or keep work and personal info about contacts separated out in the four user fields instead of jumbled together in the notes section. Not to mention having to move all that data over to notes to have access to it again.

Having birthdays sync as part of the contact and not resorting to a 3rd party program?

remapping buttons for things you actually need? Liking ditching nuance for a silent quick profile. Or having one touch dialing with the hard keyboard or have hold and press of a hard key do whatever I want it to do?

Just a few things off the top of my head.

 

[NemesisEnforcer]

I switch from the Palm Treo 755p to the Moment.I got so fed up with the random rebooting of my Treo for no reason.

If the can get the battery issues with the Moment fix this would be for me at least the best phone I have ever owned!

 

[dbpaddler]

and not that webOS is any better, but I just picked up the Pixi to give it a once through to see if my boss will like it, and was like "damn" this thing is small. Smaller footprint and as thick as the keyboard half of the Moment. Was shocked. Couldn't believe Palm had made it. Now if they only would've made it as wide as the Treo Pro, I would've been really impressed. Not caring about the fluff Android offers it'll be interesting to see if it has become worthwhile (since I returned my Pre). Already noticed the calendar was limited, and I couldn't set reminders how I wanted.