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Handhelds Software Linux Hardware

Sharp Zaurus SL-C860 Announced For Japan 139

Posted by simoniker from the in-the-palm-of-your-hand dept.
An anonymous reader writes "LinuxDevices.com reports that Sharp will introduce a new member in its Linux-based Zaurus PDA family in the Japanese market on Nov. 27, 2003. The SL-C860 appears to be a more powerful and feature-rich version of the much-reviewed SL-C750/760. The device boasts a 400MHz Intel PXA255 processor equipped with 128MB of Flash memory (65MB available for user programs) along with 64MB of SDRAM memory, has a 640x480 resolution full-VGA color display, and runs an embedded Linux operating system based on Metrowerks's OpenPDA handheld device software stack."
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Sharp Zaurus SL-C860 Announced For Japan More

Sharp Zaurus SL-C860 Announced For Japan

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  • Evolution of PDA into MicroPC (Score:4, Insightful)

    by zymano ( 581466 ) on Thursday November 13, 2003 @01:16AM (#7461533)
    I like it. I also like the widescreen with Qwerty keyboard. These could take marketshare from the ultrathin pc's . If the price is around 200-300 dollars then I may buy one.
    • lol.
      No new pda except budget ones come out in that price range.
    • try more like 6-8 hundred.... Its definately cool, but man... too bad it costs as much as some laptops...
      • 6 -8 hundred ? I would rather have a laptop.
        • Well, yes and no. A laptop is too large and unwieldy for some applications; you would not have travel directions and times on a laptop and run around in an airport or trainstation with it in your hands, for instance. Nor would you likely use a laptop in a semicrowded commuter train.

          I am lusting for this thing, not the least due to the included dictionaries. I can't help but wonder, however, if what I would really find useful was a machine with a similar screen and memory size, but simpler software, slower
    • Indeed, I wouldn't mind it being a little bigger if i could throw in a little 9.5" HDD.

      • You want to stick a nine and a half inch disk drive into a PDA?
      • I used to put an actually small HD into my PDA. PCMCIA drive, the same kind as found in the iPod. I only had a 2 GB drive, was available up to 30 GB or so. Hell, the 2 GB was a steal- only $70. Definately can't find 2 GB storage for that kind pf price with SD or CF.

        But then I traded in my Jornada 720 and Newton (yes, the 2 GB drive worked with the Newton!) for a Zaurus C760 and lost all of my precious, precious storage. I feel like my legs have been chopped off with these two chinsy 128 MB SD cards.
        • IBM CF Micro-drive. :)

          I'm surprised the Zaurus doesn't have PCMCIA, though.
          • Bah, the IBM CF Microdrive blows. Way too expensive for the amount of space; you may as well just get real flash. Maybe someday the tide will turn enough to make it a good idea, but for now it is silly. The biggest Microdrive you can get is only 1 GB.

            Yes, there is a price difference, but from my quick look, it only seems to be around $50-60 more for a CF Flash card that is 1 GB over the 1 GB microdrive. If you are spending that much on a card already, why not go for something that is a ton faster and u
    • Except that the Qwerty keyboard isn't anywhere even remotely as useful as a a real keyboard. It is functionally a thumboard, though larger. There are small devices with real keyboards, for example, the Jornada 72x or the Sigmarion III. They are both larger than the C760, but a device could be made somewhere in between. I can touch type on the kb on a Sigmarion III or a Jornada 720, but not on the C760.

      But for 200-300? Ha! Yeah right. The Sig III isn't too bad at $525 imported, but the C760 goes for up to

  • neato Japanese display (Score:4, Funny)

    by kaan ( 88626 ) on Thursday November 13, 2003 @01:20AM (#7461553)
    We're still stuck with old school pixels here in the U.S., but according to the article, the Zaurus will have a 640x480 pixil display. Isn't that similar to a pixel, but, like, cooler and stuff?
    • Well, it's used to display Linux. That means it must be better!
    • from:
      http://www.freebsd.org/doc/en_US.ISO8859-1/book s /faq/funnies.html

      "There are other methods. As every good sysadmin knows, it is part of standard practise to send data to the screen of interesting variety to keep all the pixies that make up your picture happy. Screen pixies (commonly mis-typed or re-named as 'pixels') are categorised by the type of hat they wear (red, green or blue) and will hide or appear (thereby showing the colour of their hat) whenever they receive a little piece of food. Vide

  • Nice specs (Score:2, Informative)

    by Lehk228 ( 705449 )
    I like what i am hearing in terms of hardware (as powerful as my family's old gateway astro and awesome resolution for the display size, but I think the keypad could use some work, the round arrow keys i see as a problem, the first thing i would get with it would be one of those folding or soft rubber keyboards and the second would be a big CF card to boost the storage, 128 is kinda small
    • When PDAs start to equal the power of my desktop, i think its time to start upgrading?

      Nahh, im tight and im running linux so i dont have to!

      But its interesting to watch the advancement of smaller computers approach the speed of your p2 400Mhz PC... I only recently upgraded from a P2 233 :) when i bought a 400Mhz compaq, which is now a 266Mhz Firewall/Router.

      Intereting!
      • I hope they hurry Up and make a PDA as powerful as *MY* desktop (Athlon 2200+/512megs/radeon9700pro), though my copy of XP has slowed down a ton, i didn't notice it till i created a clean account and everything was 10 times faster, i guess that would explian why they put linux on the PDA, in addition to the fact that winCE is neither free as in beer nor speech
        • No, that doesn't explain why they put Linux on their PDA. The reason- at least for Sharp- is superior Japanese support in Qtopia and probably to make it a few bucks cheaper skipping over the WinCE license. But mostly the former.

          WinCE is a ton faster then the Linux PDA setup on the Zaurus. I've posted various numbers in threads here before, but I'm not up to doing the digging, but you're more than welcome to.

          Especially bad is launch times on the Zaurus. Almost all apps launch in a second or less on any

    • Re:Nice specs (Score:2, Insightful)

      by eyeye ( 653962 )
      Rather a SD/MMC card to boost storage, then you can leave the CF card slot free for a wireless cf card etc..

      • Re:Nice specs (Score:2, Interesting)

        by mtnharo ( 523610 )
        I have the older version, the SL-5000D. Great little machine, once you dump the original Sharp supplied rom image anyway. I have both CF and SD cards for it and a wireless card for the CF slot. But unless they are using a top notch chipset for the SD/MMC cards that they can provide a Linux driver for, CF cards will be much faster for IO. Transfering data to CF over network or USB link to my Zaurus has almost no delay, whereas writing to the SD card can't keep up with the transfer speed. Makes putting music
    • Mais non. The keyboard is really nice. Photo's are always deceiving. They are raised up and have just the right amount of clickage. Exactly as clicky as the keys on a Nokia 6110 phone, in fact. It's very nice to type on.

  • URL (Score:4, Informative)

    by BJH ( 11355 ) on Thursday November 13, 2003 @01:25AM (#7461581)
    Here's the press release [sharp.co.jp] on Sharp Japan's site.

    Main features:
    1) Built-in J-E/E-J translation software
    2) CF and SD memory cards in the Zaurus can be accessed directly from a PC just by linking the PC and Zaurus with a USB cable.
    3) Can use the AirH", FreeD, bitWarp PDA and Yahoo BB wireless services.

    • Re:URL (Score:1, Funny)

      by Anonymous Coward
      Your sig is out of date:

      Searched the web for b. Results 1 - 10 of about 366,000,000. Search took 0.18 seconds.
    • I suppose that the translation software is new.

      The CF and SD card trick is just that- a nice script or two. Unless it shows up as mass storage- e.g. no driver on Win2k needed- and I'm guessing it isn't. I hope it is, because I already can "access my CF and SD memory cards directly," on the Z via Samba.

      And #3? Pfft. The drivers will probably be available for the other models- I hope. Is it just me, or is it a big disturbing that they release a whole new ROM when there's a driver or two to add? DOes tha

  • Cut the crap (Score:4, Funny)

    by The Munger ( 695154 ) on Thursday November 13, 2003 @01:27AM (#7461594) Homepage
    The device boasts a 400MHz Intel PXA255 processor equipped with 128MB of Flash memory (65MB available for user programs) along with 64MB of SDRAM memory, has a 640x480 resolution full-VGA color display

    OK, OK. Just give us the specs we need: What's it like for porn?
    • Self answering question:
      has a 640x480 resolution full-VGA color display
    • Heh, funny you should mention that.

      My litmus test for any browser is opening a bunch of porno sites in tabs (or "window list" ala Opera for the Z), the kind with a million tiny thumbnails and a few annoying pop ups. Then open up a bunch of the images in new tabs. If the browser chokes it isn't fit for me.

      And both NetFront (comes with the C7x0s) and Opera 6 (comes with the SL-5x00s, but installable on C7x0) pass this test with flying colors.

      I figured out this test a while back and it works good as a gen
  • I remember back in high school (1998), there was this guy who went around with a little laptop (about the same size as the sharp in the picture is).

    He used it to play starcraft during class.
    Anyway, it didn't fly too well with the teacher. Rumor has it that his father found out and hit him over the head with the laptop- smattering it into bits and thus rendered it useless.

    just a memory triggered by the picture.
    -Grump
    • It's a tad bigger, but perhaps you're thinking of a Toshiba Libretto [silverace.com]? There were a few models out by 1998 with Pentium processors that should have been able to handle Starcraft.
    • I doubt the laptop was as small as the Zaurus. The Zaurus in the picture is as small as most PDAs, very close to an iPAQ 3xxx, just a titch thicker.

  • Difference from the 760? (Score:5, Informative)

    by pez ( 54 ) * on Thursday November 13, 2003 @01:34AM (#7461631) Journal
    Reading the specs, nothing jumped out at me as being new when you compare it to the excellent C760. Am I missing something?

    Product Specs [dynamism.com]

    Review #1 [brighthand.com]

    Review #2 [the-gadgeteer.com]

    • Well, they're saying that they now have some new USB software ... seems like they're finally starting to take advantage of the hardware capabilities to offer a composite device that can simultaneously:

      • Act like a network link ... using the same proprietary protocol as earlier Zaurii, which needs special drivers for every OS. (They have part of an excuse of hardware limitations. Only part of one.)
      • Act like a usb mass storage ... like any old flash memory product, using standard drivers for pretty much ev

    • It looks like the hardware is exactly the same, although they seem to be showing photos of the small battery (a la SL-C750) but quoting battery life equivalent to the large battery that comes with the SL-C760.

      Feeding the press release to babelfish [altavista.com] it looks like they are just pushing new software features. Easier USB connection to a PC, JP->EN->JP transation and some different software included (Eg Mah Jong and a PDF viewer).

      I love my SL-C750 and wish they would start releasing them outside Japan.

    • Re:Difference from the 760? (Score:3, Informative)

      by pez ( 54 ) *
      It appears indeed that there is *no* hardware change in this model vs. the 760, which begs the question "why the name change"?

      Zaurus Forum thread on the topic [externe.net]

      I'm waiting for the same 7x0 form factor with built-in WiFi and Bluetooth, and perhaps a slighly larger screen. Although the 7x0's 640x480 screen is absolutely stunningly beautiful for a PDA, it could be about an inch wider and still fit in the enclosure.
      • I am waiting for a few more things to be integrated in addition to WiFi and Bluetooth. I want integrated GPS and mobile phone. THAT would be a device that I would always carry around because it would always have a use.

  • Obligatory SCO post (Score:4, Funny)

    by Sp4c3 C4d3t ( 607082 ) on Thursday November 13, 2003 @01:54AM (#7461719)
    So does SCO get $699 profit from each one sold ;)?
  • till this thing runs Windows?

    (Laugh, it's a play on "How long before it runs Linux?")

    Blogzine [blogzine.net]

  • Getting there... (Score:2, Interesting)

    by Anonymous Coward
    It's nice, but it needs to be less than 1cm thick, and needs to cost less than $500. An iBook is $1100, and is about four times the computer. An iBook is obviously much bigger, but there's no way I'd carry around a laptop and a Zaurus, so the Zaurus needs to be able to replace the basic laptop functions, and be much cheaper to be worth buying.
    • Why do people keep bringing up iBooks whenever there is any discussion of handhelds? iBooks are bricks by modern laptop standards: nearly five pounds and with a huge footprint. Apple has never produced an ultra-portable laptop.

      Now, the Panasonic Toughbook, Fujitsu Lifebook, and Sony ultraportables are serious competitors for these kinds of handhelds. Some of them are lighter than two pounds, and some of them are actually quite small. Check out dynamism.com for what's available in tiny x86-based laptops
      • The iBook is certainly very far from being a tiny ultra-pico-light, but it is very small for a laptop in its price class. Go to a store sometime, BestBuy or something simiilar, and have a look at what most x86 laptops look like. Thicker and heavier are most of them. Yes, you can get a Sony U101, but that's twice the price and half the speed. Not in the same class as the iBook.

        People usually bring up the iBook because it's a cheap and good laptop. A lot of the time when handhelds come up here, it's in

  • pixel resolution is killer (Score:4, Informative)

    by lingqi ( 577227 ) on Thursday November 13, 2003 @02:22AM (#7461810) Journal
    I was browsing the 760/650 at Tokyo (ha! isn't it great to be in japan?), and you just have to be impressed by the 200pixel-per-inch (i think higher than that, actually) resolution on the screen. It is very difficult (if possible at all) to notice the individual pixels, so the graphics look very sharp (really, no pun).

    Have to see it to be a believer though - but nontheless I am not plucking down 600 dollars on a toy that I know I won't use very much.

    For the same money I can get an FZ-10 (panasonic lumix camera), or even a sanyo SD based video camcorder (about the size of a motorola startac phone folded, 5.6x optical resolution etc) - either of which would get a LOT more use.

    However, a zaurus PDA is definitely on top of the "stuff I will buy if I win the lottery" list.
    • Folks in the US will be able to see a similar screen soon enough- their local BestBuys, OfficeMaxes, etc etcs should start carrying the Toshiba e805 which also has a 640x480 screen. See this thread. [pocketloft.com]

      Depending on how you use it, the Zaurus can be worth the money. As a PDA, the software blows and it's over priced. As a computer, it works pretty good as long as you're willing to spend a lot of time working around Linux annoyances. The C760 (C750's batt life blows too hard) plus a good external keyboard and

  • I dont see the difference (Score:4, Informative)

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 13, 2003 @02:23AM (#7461814)

    C760 [ezaurus.com]

    CPU: PXA255 400MHz
    FLASH: 128MB, 65MB free
    SDRAM: 64MB
    SD/MMC, CF slot

    C860 [sharp.co.jp]

    CPU: PXA255 400MHz
    FLASH: 128MB, 65MB free
    SDRAM: 64MB
    SD/MMC, CF slot

    Additionally it looks like power consumption, size, weight - basically everything I looked at is the same. WTF? A new whole new revision for what amounts to software only?

  • DOS emulator? (Score:4, Funny)

    by CarlDenny ( 415322 ) on Thursday November 13, 2003 @02:24AM (#7461818)
    VGA graphics + 64M of disk space. Meeemories.

    I want my old DOS 5.0 machine emulated. 400Mhz ARM procesor should be enough to emulate a 16Mhz 386, although I suspect emulating the memory controller would be trouble. I demand Wing Commander and Windows 3.1 on my PDA. Maybe a bit of Ultima 7.
    • http://dosbox.sourceforge.net/ It doesn't run everything, but it's getting there. Also, I'm pretty sure there is a native linux Ultima7 client somewhere.

    • Look at the old HP LX200 Palmtops [palmtop.net]. They might be 8Mhz, but they can handle suspiciously many DOS games. I've gotten Prince of Persia and The Secret of Monkey Island to work on mine at least.

      Also note that the clamshell design is one of the things that gave the HP LX100/200 suck a die-hard user base. (That and a viable OS)

      • DOS- a viable OS. Heh.

        That said, I used to be a DOS die hard, until I discovered linux at 14. But it was the family computer, so I couldn't wipe Windows and put on Linux, especially back then (94). DOS was swell- I never had touched Win9x until I was given a Win98 machine at work when I started college. :P

        That said, WinCE is a lot more of a "real OS" than DOS ever was. No, all of your crusty old DOS apps don't run without an emulator [pocketdos.com], but for the most part there is something better to replace them with o

    • Re:DOS emulator? (Score:1)

      by Anonymous Coward
      If you're old enough, maybe you remember the Archimedes, the first computer that used the ARM processor (the ARM was designed for it, good old days). One of the nifty software things was an Intel 80186 emulator, I played dos games, including flightsims on it, even though the ARM processor was running at 8Mhz, the emulator managed to get decent speed out of the 'pc'.

      The PXA255@400Mhz should be able to emulate 486 at ~40Mhz i think, if you hand optimise the code.

      Greets
    • actually exult [sourceforge.net], an ultima 7 engine, runs on Zaurus SL-5500 [sourceforge.net] and up - native
    • AFAIK the emulators for the Zaurus aren't nearly as good, but there are a couple really good x86 DOS emulators [pocketdos.com] out there for WinCE. I never bothered trying out Win 3.1, but with the apps I was playing with it worked like a charm. Very fast and accurate emulation... supoprts a lot more than the Zaurus's dosbox.
  • Who cares, its Linux! =P

  • cacko (Score:3, Informative)

    by mirko ( 198274 ) on Thursday November 13, 2003 @02:42AM (#7461875) Journal
    You may also visit cacko's web site to check their dedicated custom Linux distro for Sharp handheld devices.
    screenshot [cacko.biz]

  • No builtin 802.11 or Bluetooth? (Score:4, Interesting)

    by pergamon ( 4359 ) on Thursday November 13, 2003 @03:06AM (#7461940) Homepage
    I was really hoping for builtin wireless access like in the SL-6000 [linuxdevices.com].

  • PDAs are dead (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Audent ( 35893 ) <audent@ilov[ ]scuits.com ['ebi' in gap]> on Thursday November 13, 2003 @03:13AM (#7461956) Homepage
    I mean, let's face it, the cellphone market is killing these devices. I used to dream of the teeny tiny cellphone with a separate but wirelessly connected PDA (bluetooth probably) that would allow me to keep my address book/phone numbers/diary synched in one place but the phone makers aren't making the phones smaller with the same features (and thus good battery life) they're packing them full of stuff I don't want (camera anyone?) AND all the PDA functionality as well. Palm is losing out to HP these days. It's all over red-rover, long since time to sell the stock and move on.
    Am I wrong on this?
    • Did you know your PDA can also become your phone? Its true and this type of thing isnt going to stop there. You'r PDA may one day function as the remote control to your media collection in your house/car/workplace or tempreture control in home/car etc.

      Check out this PCMCIA GSM mobile phone [amazon.co.uk]

      And the mobile phone in a CF Memory card [theinquirer.net]

      PDA's arnt dead. Nor will they be in the short term. PDA's will adapt to become other devices such as mobile phones and remote controls with more hardware and software functio
      • But I'd really like my phone to be small. Ideally, small enough to sit behind my ear and not worry about.

        Maybe what I really need is a PDA with cellular capability and a bluetooth headset... the PDA can sit in my pocket/backpack and only come out when I need it and my headset can ring (and be voice activated to call out from) when I need that...

        hmmm...
        • Likewise what I need is a tiny little box that can sit in my bag or pocket providing cellular internet access to my PDA via bluetooth. I don't want a big, expensive phone. I don't want to talk to people on it. I don't want a screen. Nor do I want a keypad. Hell, I'd prefer it if they left off the speaker and mic. I just want a little box, perhaps a cube around 3 cm on a side with a power button and an A/C port to charge it that allows my PDA to get internet access via the cellular network without havin
    • I believe in modularity. There will always be a market (at least a niche market) of people that do not want a monolithic thing that does it all, but is mediocre at each function.

      The ideal solution is available today (I have it): a bluetooth PDA, a cell phone with bluetooth and GPRS (or whatever internet access protocol) and a bluetooth headset.

      You leave the phone mostly somehwere in your suitcase or backpack, can use the phone for talking can calling via voice dialling through the bluetooth headset, and c
    • Why should I have a mobile that costs 100-150 US$ (I am in the UK) for which I have to pay double or triple the cost of the line rental when compared to a landline?

      I don't need to be contactable all the time, my ansewring machine at home can take care of that, and for contacting people I use an old mobile with Pay as you Go capabilities, or I call form my office or home phone, places where I spend at least 18 hours a day?

      There are far too many people out there rushing to buy this stuff for no good reason
      • I have it the exact opposite. I cannot be contacted at work if not for my cell phone. I also don't spend a whole lot of time at home. I work about 84 hours a week right now but when I'm not working, I only spend half the off time at home it's nice to have my phone with me. I also have two roommates and none of us spend much time at the house. We all have cell phones. We don't even have a land line because we spend so little time there that the $40/month can now go towards other things. PDA's are quite conve
        • I work about 84 hours a week right now but when I'm not working,

          thats exactly half a week. You work 12 hours a day every day?

          My god, slaves were treated better than that.
          • thats exactly half a week. You work 12 hours a day every day?
            It is possible, I've done it myself on occasion - but never for more than two weeks consecutively.
            I was a lot younger then.
          • I'm sorry. My math wasn't quite correct.

            I work 12.25 hours every shift I work, on an alternating A/B 14-day schedule. In theory, this means I would only have to work 7 days out of any 14 day period. We're short people right now, so I'm working both A and B shifts. That comes out to: 85.75 hours a week. It's a symbiotic relationship. I'm broke, and they're shorthanded. I typically take anywhere from 2 to 5 days off a month.

            My average bi-weekly paycheck:
            80 Regular time
            +80 1.5x Overtime
            +10 2x Overtime
            -----
            Ro
    • Yes, you're wrong on this.

      You see, different folks want different things. There is not one single phone/pda/camera thing that is anywhere near what I want or need. Maybe someday, but not for a number of years. I want my PDA to be my computer. That is to say, I want a computer that fits in my pocket. No phone could do that. A PDA with a phone card could, though.

      A lot of folks don't give a damn about most PDA functionality and are perfectly content with a tiny phone with a three line screen with an add
    • I need a spreadsheet, Transcriber, an MP3 player with SD or other removeable memory.

      And I don't own or have a need for a cell phone.

      But I agree that a good multi-function cell phone does cut down on the number of potential PDA buyers.
      • But I agree that a good multi-function cell phone does cut down on the number of potential PDA buyers.
        It would if it existed.
        If it's big enough to be a useful PDA, it's bigger than a phone needs to be.

  • It would seem that Qtopia is becoming the standard (Score:4, Interesting)

    by donscarletti ( 569232 ) on Thursday November 13, 2003 @03:18AM (#7461982)
    It would seem that OpenPDA is a Metrowerks derivitive of Qtopia. Every time I see a pda that runs Qtopia I worry about the future of Linux pdas.

    Qtopia is a finely engeneered environment, and I have nothing but praise for what I see in screenshots and technical documents about it. However I see the same problems with Qtopia being accepted as the de-facto standard for linux PDAs and I have with those who would make QT the de-facto standard in desktop linux GUIs.

    Qtopia like its parent QT is written in C++, a farily controversial language amongst linux developers, it also uses Meta Objects which are an even more controversial addition to the language. This threatens to isolate many developers who would not use such a tool because of personal preference, with no fallback into an ISO standard complient c++ environment or a c environment.

    Qtopia is also licenced under the same licence scheme as QT, dual licenced under the GPL and QPL. This sceme allows development of open source applications using the GPL and proprietary applications using the QPL after per-developer fees have been payed. This is however sub-optimal in comparison to a simple LGPL or BSD licences in which similar libarys of this type have been licenced for numerous reasons. First and least importantly it seems silly that to develop a graphical progam under Palm OS is free, yet for a linux PDA (the so called free OS) eqivalent one must pay a licence fee. Secondly, the QPL also misses out on multiple consumer protection clauses regarding binary distributed software noted in the LGPL. Thirdly in order to port the application to another platform, an activity in-keeping with the Free Software spirit, licence fees must be payed even for an open application. I am sure Trolltech would be happy to arrange an exemption for a bona fide OSS project, however this type of special arrangement is not in keeping with the principles of Free Software.

    This post is not intended to insite a flamewar, I have made no value judgments about the actual performance or technical elements of either Qtopia or QT, I havn't commented on the legitimacy of KDE, which I belive is a fine project, probably exceding gnome in power and usability. However I urge people to consider these aspects when they choose which projects to support. Remember, in the future it will be possible to unify the desktop by making QT dependant on GNUStep, GTK+ or whatever comes out in front in a similar way to what Trolltech has done with MacOS and Windows interfaces, but the reverse is impossible due to both licence and structual incompatibilites.

    • Qtopia like its parent QT is written in C++, a farily controversial language amongst linux developers, it also uses Meta Objects which are an even more controversial addition to the language. This threatens to isolate many developers who would not use such a tool because of personal preference, with no fallback into an ISO standard complient c++ environment or a c environment.

      Signals and Slots are the metaphor of Qt, yes. And it's true that in order to use the GUI, you have to use the GUI library. It's

      • The QPL is a Open Source Inititive certified license. It gives you different rights than the GPL, but it is a very open and friendly license that meets all the OSI criteria. In addition, it's applicable to the full, freely downloadable Qt source. I.e., the QPL is another open source license you can use at no cost to write and distribute your software under, if you happen not to like the GPL.

        Yes, Qtopia is licensed under OSI-compliant licenses. But the important question is whether those licenses achieve
        • Qt/Embedded and Qtopia are basically a grab by a small company to own the commercial handheld space.

          And what in the world is wrong with that? They are giving for free to those who give back, and charging those who charge. Almost any software that is sufficiently successful is going to become a de facto standard and thus a necessity to those who want to enter the market. By charging those who charge they can maybe hope to barely make payroll if they produce best in the world quality work. You begrudge

          • By charging those who charge they can maybe hope to barely make payroll if they produce best in the world quality work. You begrudge them this.

            No, I'm just saying that the combination of design and license they chose for Qt/Embedded is contrary to the goals of free and open source software.

            You see, Qt/Embedded is not just some software product, it's something that excludes every other toolkit from the platform it runs on.

            Note that this is a case-by-case issue. I have no problem with dual-licenses for R

      • Thirdly in order to port the application to another platform, an activity in-keeping with the Free Software spirit, licence fees must be payed even for an open application.

        Wrong. Qt is GPLed. It runs under Windows, OSX and other OSes. Qt for Windows is a different product entirely that has support for DirectX and other Windows specific features. Qt itself, however, runs just dandy on any modern OS, and the community has ported it to experimental and very niche OSes.

        To clarify: Qt for Windows is in n

    • Qtopia isn't really a "finely engeneered environment." It is passable, yes, but really falls short in a number of areas specific to PDAs and in general, any stylus-based system. It's a shame- it is my philosophy that if you're going to create a system from mostly-scrtach like Trolltech did with Qtopia, you should do it right so that when entrenchment happens everyone isn't stuck with the same substandard design. And it does happen, even with very few users entrenchment is inevitable.

      They have a lot more
  • Still no bluetooth or wifi built in..

    no further comment required
  • Even though the Sony Clie UX is in many ways and times more primitive compared to this Zaurus (real compact flash support, large color screen, long battery life, industry standards support), the Clie UX, or some derivative of it every 2 months from Sony will end up be ubiquitious, IMO :)

    Much like VHS vs Beta.
    • Is that a joke? Beta was made by Sony!
    • Before I'd buy one, the UX50 would have to have at least PalmOS 6 or something less sucky than POS 5.2.x and under. And it'd have to have a bigger screen, something not a little bigger than a postage stamp. I don't need a super high res (although my current PDA has a 800x480 res), but I do need a physically larger screen. And the keyboard would have to suck far less. No the Zaurus C7x0's kb is far from perfect, but the UX50's sucks ass royally.
    • A couple of months ago I was agonizing over whether to buy a C760 from Japan or a UX50. I went with the latter [slashdot.org] and have been very happy with my choice so far.

      UX-50 advantages:
      • Magnesium case so tough I really can keep it in the same pocket as my keys.
      • Tiny size that's smaller than my three previous Palm OS PDAs. In fact, other than in thickness it's about the same size as the Sharp YO-110 addressbook I carried in the early '90s.
      • Terrific PIM software that lets me use the same addressbook, datebook, todo,

  • Some important things missing (Score:3, Interesting)

    by ciryon ( 218518 ) on Thursday November 13, 2003 @07:15AM (#7462708) Journal
    Where's

    Bluetooth ?
    802.11x ?
    Mac and Linux sync ?

    IrDa, bah...

    Ciryon
    • Bluetooth ?
      802.11x ?
      Mac and Linux sync ?

      No one cares about 802.11x. For a PDA, it's just a non-issue. But the lack of Bluetooth is a real problem. Sharp have come so close to creating the perfect PDA. If it had Bluetooth, I'd be buying one tomorrow, and importing it from Japan. But it doesn't, which leaves a CF bluetooth card as the only sensible alternative, and that's far from ideal (the CF slot is better used to add extra storage).

      • No one cares about 802.11x for a PDA? Heh. Maybe you live in a magical land where you can't by wifi hubs to install in your house and other people don't have them for free or subscribed use. (they sure as hell have them in london)

        I'd be pissed if I didn't have 802.11b for my PDA. There is no way I'm going to put a little bluetooth transciever in every room of my apartment to get slow internet access. PDAs these days - even the $99 Palm Zire- are pretty powerful computers, their users being folks who enj
    • This new PDA is 8.8oz! Compare it with HP's H2210 (that happens to come WITH bluetooth) that is only 5.1oz or H4150 (with bluetooth AND 802.11b) which is 4.7oz or H4350 (with bluetooth AND 802.11b AND keyboard) which is 5.8oz...

  • I found out about this the other and leapt over to the babelfish [altavista.com]. It appears to be identical to the SL-C760 but with some extra software loaded onto the ROM. Namely, a JapaneseEnglish dictionary and built-in support to connect to some of Japan's Wireless ISPs.

    So not more powerful at all.

  • you know.. (Score:2, Insightful)

    by Lord Bitman ( 95493 )
    I bought the first Zaurus I heard about, the SL-5600 I think.. then I starded hearing about the next and greatest Zaurus yet, so I sold mine in anticipation, knowing that what I had would be near-worthless once this new model came out..
    Since then, I have not once been at a point where I have seen a new Zaurus released Without the next and greatest version already having been announced-
    Way to go, guys. Your marketing is done by idiots. Could you maybe wait a full month between the release of your current pro
  • Another PDA we'll never see in the States...or Europe...or ever!? Oh, and it's probably $499-$599...good thing they chose Linux or who knows HOW much it would cost!
    JAV
  • I'd suggest that people buy the Zaurus handhelds instead of iPaqs if they want to support Linux. I still don't get it why people buy iPaqs and then whine about WindowsCE on it and painfully install OPIE.

    Why not just go with the company that has chosen Linux, support them, make their sales numbers increase? Buy Linux directly!
  • I've been interested in these Palm/CE alternatives, but how well do they sync with standard PIM's? Do the Linux PDA's sync with Outlook, or Mozilla on Windows? Do I have to run Linux on the desktop?

    I write software for Windows CE, and have several handhelds. Can anyone tell me about thier experinces with Zaurus?
  • And where is the globalization when it would benefit the people and not the corps? Sharp Zaurus are not officially sold in Europe! :-(

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