PC World has a rundown on the differences between the Palm Treo 650 and 700 phones, which are PDA/Phone hybrids from Palm. The 650 runs Palm OS, and the 700 runs Windows Mobile 5.0. I haven’t seen anything to indicate that the 700 is a stripped down Windows Mobile device - i.e. like many of the Smartphones that can’t run all Windows Mobile software (including genealogy software). It definitely looks like the 700 is a full Windows Mobile 5.0 device that looks like it can run genealogy software, but I’m not 100% sure just yet. The 650 can run Palm OS genealogy software (not sure of any limitations).

One important difference, the 650 has a 360×360 screen, whereas the 700 has a 240×240 screen. On the other hand, the 700 has 128MB of built-in memory, while the 650 has 32MB, and the 700 is faster. The 700 also has a 1.3MP digital camera, while the 650 is a much lower resolution.

Treo Mobile has extensive coverage of both of these phones.

The Treos could be a good compromise for genealogists who want a mobile device, but are afraid they won’t use it much, or that it will be “just one more thing” to carry along - using them as both phones and PDAs can be handy.

Posted in Articles & Reviews, Hardware, Palm OS, PocketPC/Windows Mobile No Comments »

Dick Eastman, of Eastman’s Online Genealogy Newsletter, has published a look at laptop security from a genealogist’s perspective - for those times when you take your laptop into a genealogy research center or library.

Posted in Articles & Reviews, Hardware No Comments »

There’s a good article in Eastman’s Online Genealogy Newsletter covering using a laptop’s wireless connection when you are doing research in libraries and research centers that have wireless internet access

Posted in Articles & Reviews No Comments »

Dick Eastman has a tip on reading RSS feeds on your iPod (iPod, iPod mini, iPod Nano, with Notes facility).

Posted in Articles & Reviews, Hardware No Comments »

If you are a Pocket PC/Windows Mobile user, and you are looking for alternative input methods, you should read this review of CalliGrapher 8.0 from MobileTechReview.com.

Posted in Articles & Reviews, PocketPC/Windows Mobile No Comments »

Some of you may have seen this - PocketMod: The Free Disposable Personal Organizer, a Flash-based application that will allow you to easily print out information in a way that allows you to fold it up and easily access it.

Posted in Articles & Reviews No Comments »

Dick Eastman (Eastman’s Online Genealogy Newsletter) concludes his series, Handheld Computers: A Genealogist’s View, with part 3.

Posted in Articles & Reviews, PocketPC/Windows Mobile No Comments »