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Visor Pro
November 7, 2001
On the surface, the Visor Pro isn’t all that spectacular a device. After all, it’s almost exactly the same size and weight as a Visor Deluxe, though it is a cool silver color. And it’s got a wonderful smokey grey transparent cover. At last I can see what my alarm is reminding me about without having to take off an opaque screen cover first! That’s really the only change from the Deluxe to the Pro, cosmetically speaking. You’ll also find a rechargeable battery, so no more worries about disposables. I found that the Pro charged very quickly in its cradle, and a few minutes a day was enough to keep it fully charged.
Under the hood however, there are several noticeable changes. For starters, you’ll find that there’s 16MB of RAM loaded in the Visor Pro, instead of the more standard 8MB that you’ll find in other Palm OS devices. That’s a huge step up that may make the various memory expansion methods available unnecessary for some Visor Pro owners. 16MB is plenty of room for some of the larger applications, such as WordSmith, ActionNames, and AvantGo, plus plenty of games and ebooks to occupy your less productive moments. Of course you still have the SpringBoard slot, so you can add a memory module or one of the adapters that lets you use Compact Flash cards with your handheld, and that may be important to you if you are a medical professional who needs access to large informational databases such as the Merck Manual. But the casual user will most likely find that 16MB is plenty of room for all of their favorite applications and data.
The other big change is the screen. While I personally would have a hard time using anything but a color handheld, I must say that the Visor Pro’s screen is a remarkable achievement. It displays 16 shades of grey, and it is remarkably strong and crisp. I thought when I first got the unit that I would have a hard time using a greyscale screen for any length of time, but the Visor Pro was very easy on my less-than-perfect eyes. Don’t forget too that the Visor Pro comes with all of the standard Palm OS applications, as well as DateBk+ and CityTime.
The Visor Pro is a really nice value, but it also makes decision-making more difficult. For the same price, you can get a Visor Prism (color screen), a Visor Pro (twice the memory), or a HandEra 330 (voice recording features, industry-standard Compact Flash and Secure Digital expansion, higher screen resolution, and soft Graffiti area). Your choice will most likely revolve around whether or not you need/want a color screen (Prism vs. Pro), and if greyscale is OK, the choice boils down to whether you want to use SpringBoard modules or Compact Flash cards for expansion (Pro vs. HandEra). Since handheld computers are very personal devices, it’s impossible for me to say what your choice should be, though I can say that the Visor Pro would be a good choice considering the extra memory, rechargeable battery, and SpringBoard module slot. It’s available for $299 from HandSpring.
Looks like it’s going to be a very interesting Christmas shopping season!
