I recently purchased the PalmOne Treo 650, which has the "new universal" connector slot, and is thus incompatible with all previous charging and syncing cables. The cable that is included with the Treo is a hydra-style cable: there is a USB-to-Treo section and a power-to-Treo section, the latter of which plugs into the back of the former so that you charge as you synch. It's a clunky, multi-headed affair. As of this writing there is still no cradle from PalmOne for the 650. But there is a more elegant solution: the Sedio Retractable Sync"N"Charge USB Cable.
This compact cable allows your Treo (and presumably other "new universal" slot devices) to charge from your computer (laptop or desktop) while you are synchronizing your data. The cable, when fully retracted, is about two inches long, making a much smaller addition to the clutter in your bag.
One morning, I realized my Treo was dangerously low on juice after several days without a charge, and I slipped this tiny cable into my jean pocket on the way out the door for a busy day. I stole minutes here and there while roaming the building to plug it in to randomly available USB ports as I hurried about my inter-office travels. By the time lunch came around, and I finally had the chance to sit down and do a proper charge, I no longer needed to worry about my Treo shutting down due to low power, as I had managed to charge it up beyond the 25% "red zone" in the 650's battery indicator!
The only drawback I can see to this accesory is the common weakness of all retractable cables: the flat, thin wires required to compactly spool the cable means that if feels fragile. Past experience with a similar retractable headset cable taught me to deliberately and steadily pull the two ends of the cable away from the center spool at an even rate to avoid jamming or tangling while extending. Also, you should remember with retracting these sorts of cables to make a slight tug and then allow it to spool up casually. Tugging the cable harshly may effect a snappy retraction, but is more likely to result in a tangled cable, or even to break it. The tradeoff for this compact single-thread cable, then, is a requirement to take more care in how you extend and retract it.
I have had no problems synching with this cable, and it is now my exclusive way of charging and synching when away from my home office. Whether you work in an office, or carry a laptop and move about, I recommend you buy the Sync"N"Charge before a car charger or cradle - you may find, as I have, that you really don't need anything more.
January 20, 2005
Updating the website....
I hate having to update things. I can't deal with To Do lists well because they have to be checked off, updated, and otherwise manipulated to keep them current. (Task 1 is now 25% complete. Task 2 is 50% done. Task 3 is finished.) But they do serve a purpose. I am learning more and more that I can let my Palm manage my lists - which it's done for the 6 years or so that I've had it, like the Newton before it. But I'm far from being a project manager type, with mile stones and charts and such. Seems more time is spent updating the lists than doing the work.
And so it is that months go by without an update to the web site. (You knew there was a relationship between this article and the title, didn't you? Thanks for staying with me.) I was reminded Monday night that the web site was a bit out of date. He was being nice. Most of our information sharing takes place in meetings, and they are very random events, for the most part.
This month, however, we have a bit of a surprise. Phi Sanders, member, Treo 650 user, and erstwhile co-worker of yours truly, has written a review of a cable that one of our vendor sponsors sent for that purpose. We've had some swag off and on in the past 18 months, but nothing like in those halcyon days of the dot-com years. So, to do justice to the nice folks at Seiko, who in December came out with a retractable sync cable specifically fitted for the "new universal" connector of the 650, Phi's review will appear as a post here.
But I would like this trend to continue. Are there folks out there writing about topics that we should share here on the TAPIT page? I think so. If you'd like to assist me in managing contributions to the web site, please drop me an email, either here or through the yahoo group link. If you have a blog that covers PDAs and other mobile tech, let me know and I'll make sure I add a feed to your posts here.
A users' group, after all, belongs to the users, not just to the founder of the group. And, who knows? You may benefit from a nice piece of software or the next sample to review.
And so it is that months go by without an update to the web site. (You knew there was a relationship between this article and the title, didn't you? Thanks for staying with me.) I was reminded Monday night that the web site was a bit out of date. He was being nice. Most of our information sharing takes place in meetings, and they are very random events, for the most part.
This month, however, we have a bit of a surprise. Phi Sanders, member, Treo 650 user, and erstwhile co-worker of yours truly, has written a review of a cable that one of our vendor sponsors sent for that purpose. We've had some swag off and on in the past 18 months, but nothing like in those halcyon days of the dot-com years. So, to do justice to the nice folks at Seiko, who in December came out with a retractable sync cable specifically fitted for the "new universal" connector of the 650, Phi's review will appear as a post here.
But I would like this trend to continue. Are there folks out there writing about topics that we should share here on the TAPIT page? I think so. If you'd like to assist me in managing contributions to the web site, please drop me an email, either here or through the yahoo group link. If you have a blog that covers PDAs and other mobile tech, let me know and I'll make sure I add a feed to your posts here.
A users' group, after all, belongs to the users, not just to the founder of the group. And, who knows? You may benefit from a nice piece of software or the next sample to review.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)