In the past, Palm's approach to PDA design has been clear: keep things simple and produce slick devices with adequate specifications for note taking, appointment tracking and contact organisation. But the Tungsten C marks a departure from this prosaic outlook. Just a brief glance at the spec sheet reveals that this is less of a pure PDA and more of a palmtop computer to compete with Pocket PC.
The primary evidence is the amount of memory leaping skywards. From a maximum of 16MB in previous Palms, the Tungsten C comes with an iPAQ-style 64MB, with 51MB free for applications and storage.
But that's not the only change. Abandoning its loyalty to chips with low power consumption but adequate speed – chiefly Motorola's 33MHz DragonBall CPU – Palm has loaded the Tungsten C with Intel's XScale processor, the most powerful handheld processor currently available. The PXA255 variant in the C runs at its maximum 400MHz too, as opposed to Sony's latest Palm-powered CLIÉs, which are fitted with 200MHz parts.
Third on the list of the C's major hardware inclusions is wireless networking, with an integrated 802.11b adaptor.
While those who get upset about such things might feel that Palm is selling out under pressure from Microsoft, the fact is that with the new souped-up hardware under the bonnet the Tungsten C flies along. However, the combination of the wireless networking and fast processor means that the battery life isn't fantastic. Using it as an everyday PDA for appointment and contact management, plus checking email over the wireless link, I managed to get just shy of three hours from the non-removable Lithium-Ion battery.
But despite all the new hardware, the C isn't targeted as a consumer entertainment device. This is indicated by the lack of a standard 3.5mm headphone jack; instead, there's a 2.5mm socket for a hands-free headset, while expansion is catered for with a single SD/MMC card slot.
Perhaps more importantly, though, this is the first Palm we've seen that has a keyboard. This ousts the usual dedicated area for Graffiti handwriting recognition. Instead, you need to write directly on the screen over the top of the GUI, which takes some getting used to if you're a long-term Palm aficionado. It's an awkward compromise that often leads to the Tungsten thinking you're trying to write when you're actually attempting to drag a scroll bar. To offset the problem, there's an omnipresent blue box, which you can tap to turn recognition off, but it's a bit of a hindrance to the usual flow of working.
Compounding the sense of unfamiliarity even further is the Graffiti 2 handwriting-recognition software, which arrives in the wake of legal wrangles with Xerox over the original version. Palm claims the new system is better, but anyone used to the original is likely to find their speed of text entry slows to a crawl as they attempt to adjust to the changes.
The old Graffiti allowed all letters to be formed with a single stroke, while several of Graffiti 2's require two. The letter 'T', for instance, which was previously formed in one stroke with an upside-down 'L', now has to be formed by writing a downstroke and then crossing it.
Among further frustrations, while Caps Shift was previously activated by an upstroke, the stroke now puts the unit into punctuation mode; to get uppercase letters, you need to write characters so they overlap both the letter and number recognition areas.
In practice, this was difficult, as there's no visible on-screen delineation of the zones.
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 as well.
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 (February 2003, page 37) 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 easily 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 of the page.
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.