Palm Tungsten C

Another frustration is the four-way Navigator pad with its central Select button. It's smaller than the Tungsten T's (to accommodate the keyboard), which makes it difficult to press Select without simultaneously pressing the Navigator pad.

Something in the Tungsten C's favour, however, is the 16-bit colour 320 x 320 pixel TFT screen. It's backlit and transflective so consequently usable in complete darkness or direct sunlight, and a slide-on leatherette cover will adequately protect it when travelling too.

It goes without saying that all this new hardware bumps up the price a fair bit, but unfortunately this also means a reduction in the sexiness stakes. The Tungsten C is only fractionally larger than an open Tungsten T (see issue 99, p94) but feels chunkier, with a fairly thick bezel around the screen and a noticeably increased weight of just under 180g - enough for you to be continually reminded you have it in your pocket. Thankfully, the wireless adaptor is faired into the chassis with no external aerial.

The 802.11b implementation is also well integrated and simple to set up. If there's a DHCP server on your wireless network, it's simply a matter of tapping Connect. The VersaMail email application presented no difficulties when it came to downloading POP3 mail via the wireless network, and configuring server settings and IP addresses is an area where the tiny keyboard wins out over handwriting.

The PalmSource web browser also has the potential to be a useful application, being relatively powerful with JavaScript support and niceties such as text field autofill. However, a persistent and frustrating rendering bug meant that the left-hand edge of many pages - even simple text-based ones - was cut off with no way of scrolling to view the missing portions.

But, minor complaints aside, Palm's Tungsten C represents a good frontline challenge to Pocket PC for business use. It sacrifices style and streamlined usability in favour of a more powerful, but more utilitarian approach. Think of it as less of a lifestyle accessory, more of a tool.

Author: David Fearon