The Gadget Gene

I suffer from the male genetic malady of the Gadget Gene. If it blinks, lights up, requires batteries, has a button, buzzes, lights up, vibrates, connects to something else via wireless or a cord, and has a computer chip, I’m for it. I’m too much of a generalist to qualify for the lofty status of membership into geekdom, but I can understand the tribal dialect and can hold my own more often than not. I find some comfort in that I know I’m not alone in my malady (see Geekdad).

We’re beginning to go through our annual round of the pre-Christmas question, “So, what do you want for Christmas?” Which only serves to exacerbate the Gadget Gene condition. What new gadget to get? So many choices!

Lately the Gadget Gene itch has gotten me hunting for the perfect portable computer. It’s not like I need another one (there are five working laptops in the house). I’m just caught in the grips of a geeky quest. My son, who probably carries several thousand dollars worth of hi-tech equipment on his person on the job, but, who does not own a PDA, preferring instead to write notes on a paper pocket flip notebook (like Columbo), says my condition isn’t genetic, it’s just a form of insanity. Perhaps.

Here’s the current history of the gadget quest (click on the pictures to enlarge).

It started several years ago, innocently enough, with the Palm Pilot. I turned in my paper organizer for it. I gave that up when the battery became unreliable. I went back to a notebook organizer.

Later I got the Jornada. Nice, but its battery started to get funky too. I gave that to my other son, the engineer.

My current PDA is the Dell Axim. Not something I would have picked out but I got it free. It’s a really nice unit and I very much enjoy using the handwriting notation feature. It’s amazingly accurate in reading even my hurried scrawl. Best of all it automatically and quickly translates my handwriting to text in Word. I’ve got about 20 e-books in this one, also.

As for the mini computers (“mini” or UMPC), here’s the damage:

Early on I bought the NEC 9000. This is a fun computer with limited versatility, but it does all the basics needed for working (EXCEL, Word, etc.). Great for the writer who needs something handy. It’s “instant on” so no waiting for the computer to start up when you have an inspired thought you want to write down. Memory card slots means you can smoothly move your work to your main computer to put on the finishing touches. While small at nine and a half inches across, its keyboard is 92% of full size so you can touch type on it, plus it has a touchscreen. This is a keeper.

The Fujitsu Stylistic c-500. I use this pretty much for reading e-books and e-documents. The battery pack is heavy and it has an old DOS system not worth upgrading at this point.

Then, I got the Sony Vaio. A very cool computer (it’s a full-blown PC) with a high resolution five and a half in screen. But, the keyboard is impossible to even thumb-type on, and, it’s got Vista (don’t get me started). I gave that to my engineer son.

Next, I bought the Fujitsu Lifebook U810. Very, very cool tablet PC, six and a half inches across with a fantastic five and half inch screen. Fully loaded and highly functional but for the Windows Vista (don’t’ get me started). This one’s on hold till I swap out to Windows XP install disk and get rid of Vista (what were they thinking?!).

I really enjoy the Fujitsu P1120. Great travel computer with a battery that lasts hours. It has wireless and a touch screen. Great for hand annotations on documents you’re editing as it translates your handwriting to text. A very readable eight and a half in screen.

The latest one is the HP 2133. Eight and a half inch screen with full widescreen resolution. Wireless, memory slots, long battery life, super lightweight. The best thing about this one is its almost full-sized keyboard. Typing is a breeze. I’m really enjoying this one.

Finally, for reading e-books I have the Sony e-book Reader. Well over 30 e-books in this one with room for more. The battery on this thing lasts forever. I don’t even take the charger with me on long trips.

So, what do I want for Christmas . . . .? Maybe I’ll just get a book.