Product Reviews

It's two years since Fossil first announced its intention to produce a Palm PDA in a wrist watch. And, finally, under new Fossil brand Abacus, here it is.

The first thing you notice about the wrist PDA is that it's big. However, it's not so huge that it looks ridiculous. And given the fashion for slightly oversized, chunky watches, you can just about get away with it without eliciting strange looks from passers-by or sniggers from colleagues.

Its substantial, brushed-metal case is held to your wrist by an equally substantial strap. Cleverly, the stylus, with which you navigate through the PDA's applications and features, is hidden in the strap's buckle. Thankfully, a replacement stylus is included in the box, as the stylus is so tiny we feel it will be easily lost.

Technologically, the PDA part of the Wrist PDA isn't what you would call cutting edge. This isn't

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really an issue, though, as this is a device aimed at those who want easy access to contacts, calendar, to-do lists and the like, rather than 'multimedia' features such as games, movies and photos.

The Palm OS 4.1-based PDA is driven by a Motorola Dragonball Super V2 processor supported by 8MB of RAM and 4MB of flash memory. The 160 x 160 pixel display is highly legible and perfectly adequate.

The Wrist PDA comes pre-installed with the Palm Address Book, Calculator, Date Book and Memo Pad. Handwriting recognition uses the Jot or Graffiti 2 systems, which enable you to write anywhere on the screen.There's also a choice of watch faces.

In addition to the three navigation buttons and rocker switch, the Wrist PDA has a mini-USB port to which you connect both a USB cable for hot syncing and a power adaptor for charging. The supplied Y-shaped cable allows you to connect both at the same time.

In use, the Wrist PDA works well, although the stylus is a little tricky to use and the navigation buttons take a bit of practice. Battery life was a bit disappointing - Fossil quotes 3-4 days, but we found that to be generous. Sensibly, though, the watch switches to time-telling mode when the PDA isn't being used.

We like the Abacus Wrist PDA: it's a good first effort. The one key problem is the need to charge it every couple of days, though. That's something we're used to in a PDA or mobile phone, but it's pretty inconvenient in a wrist watch.