Sony has clearly upped the ante with the Clié PEG-665C. In some ways, the Clié PEG-665C has bested Palm's own flagship M515 model. For instance, Palm's standard 160 X 160 pixel screen has long been a sore point with users. The PEG-665C doubles the screen to 320 X 320 pixels for a high-resolution display worthy of showcasing its brilliant 65,000-plus colors.
This sleek aluminum unit sits in my hand nicely, and the indented power button makes it easy to power the unit on with a finger or the too-small toothpick stylus. The thin rectangular application buttons look cool and complement the modern design, but they're simply too small and crowded for comfortable use. The two-way rocker switch is even smaller, and nearly unusable. Thankfully, Sony wisely includes a handy jog wheel and back button to assist in one-handed operation. The unit also has a Memory Stick slot, stereo headphone jack, removable flip-cover -- and Sony even threw in a pair of headphones with volume controller.
The PEG-655C includes all the classic Palm organizer apps such as Date Book, Address Book, To Do List, Memo Pad and Alarm Clock. Additionally, Sony includes a generous helping of freebies on CD-ROM. These full-featured apps allow you to create and edit MS Word and Excel compatible docs, check your e-mail, watch videos, listen to music, view photos, paint pictures and more.
The included Clié Remote Commander software even allows you to remotely control your audio/visual equipment from up to 15 feet away. The software worked flawlessly right out of the box for my TV and DVD player and is as close to a no-brainer universal remote as you'll ever find. A very nice freebie indeed.
When it comes to battery life, the Palm OS is the camel of the handheld world, so it surprised me when the PEG-665C required recharging every 2.5 to three hours. This probably explains why Sony opted for an unlit Graffiti area. You'll need to dim the screen if you want to conserve power.
While this handheld isn't for everyone, the bright crisp screen and generous software bundle more than make up for the poor button layout. If you're in the market for a PDA and can live with the battery life, then you'll definitely want to consider the Sony Clié PEG-665C handheld.
(Editor's Note: At the time of this writing, Sony announced new models running the brand new Palm OS 5.0 on the Intel PXA250 200 MHz. This is good news for the cost conscious, as the price of the T665C has dropped to make way for the new models.)
