Expert Review
palmOne Zire 31

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Expert Rating:  4  (what's this?)

Expert Review

palmOne Zire 31

Date Published: 11/3/04

If you are looking for an entry-level PDA, but can't quite face staring at an old-fashioned black and white screen, the Zire 31 from palmOne is a great choice. It looks almost identical to its lower-end sibling, the Zire 21, except that it has a blue case and, of course, the display is in color. The layout of the keys is also similar to the Zire 21's. On the front, it has the power button and two other buttons that launch the Calendar and Contacts. It also has a 5-way pad and a Graffiti writing area below the main display. Considering the Zire 31 is such a low-end PDA, it comes with quite a bit of software. It's certainly enough to do the traditional PDA tasks, such as keeping track of your appointments and contacts. The Zire 31 comes with the latest version of the Palm OS and the standard contact and calendar applications, but palmOne also throws in extra database and financial applications, along with the ubiquitous solitaire. Although the display isn't as high-end as those on pricier PDAs, the 160x160 color display is pleasant to look at. Another nifty feature is that the Zire 31 can play MP3s if you have an expansion card. It has a headphone jack, and although the headphones are sold separately, it comes with the RealOne Mobile player, so you can control volume and play lists. Unlike some entry-level PDAs that have limited memory and no expansion slot, the Zire 31 has a respectable 16MB of RAM and an SD slot that you can use for storage cards to hold your extra files and programs. The SD slot also supports SDIO, so you can use SD networking cards. It also has an infrared port, so you can beam information and applications to your computer or other PDAs. Synching the Zire 31 is a simple process. The unit has a connector on the side, and it comes with a cable and charger. Because the unit connects using USB, you do need to have a USB port on your computer to hot sync it. Pro: Color display and low price. Con: Battery is not user-replaceable. FOR MORE INFORMATION palmOne 400 N. McCarthy Blvd. Milpitas, CA 95035 408-503-7000 http://www.palmone.com

Warranty
90 days



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Magic Debugger

release: 8.4.3-qa1
content_id: 257940
type: review
category: l4-cp-pdas

brws title: Consumer Guide: palmOne Zire 31 Review

meta d: palmOne Zire 31 PDAs offer digital organization, ease-of-use, and a color screen for a reasonable price. Read Consumer Guide's review before you buy.

url: http://shopproducts.howstuffworks.com/Franklin-ROLODEX-RT-8015/SF-1/PID-23058074