Do old PDAs have any use?

[Cuddles McKitten]

I've got an old Dell Axim X3 that I just dug up in a closet. It was given to me by an employer years ago, and I never used it since I've always preferred a notepad (the analog kind) for taking notes. To make matters worse, my PDA is so old it has no wireless card and only 8 MB of space of flash memory. There is <i>one</i> slot for an expansion card, which would mean that I could either have wireless or memory capable of storing more than a couple of cat pictures.

I'm struggling to think of any possible use I could have for it. Does anyone have any suggestions of what to do with it?

[joey-elijah]

I've got an old Dell Axim X3 that I just dug up in a closet. It was given to me by an employer years ago, and I never used it since I've always preferred a notepad (the analog kind) for taking notes. To make matters worse, my PDA is so old it has no wireless card and only 8 MB of space of flash memory. There is <i>one</i> slot for an expansion card, which would mean that I could either have wireless or memory capable of storing more than a couple of cat pictures.

I'm struggling to think of any possible use I could have for it. Does anyone have any suggestions of what to do with it?

tiny eBook reader?

[dragos240]

What about using it for what it was meant to be used for, schedule!

[blueshiftoverwatch]

Does anyone have any suggestions of what to do with it?
Submerge it in water while turned on and see how long it takes to short out.

[starcannon]

I'm struggling to think of any possible use I could have for it. Does anyone have any suggestions of what to do with it?

It is still useful for its intended function no?
Day planner, basic email reader, and maybe as suggested, added feature of being an inexpensive and very portable ebook reader.

Enjoy it, or pass it on too someone who doesn't already have something better. Just try to keep it out of the landfill for as long as possible.

[MasterNetra]

You can use it for the stuff it was ment for or it could make a decent paper weight?

[sgosnell]

It is actually a general-purpose computer with a touchscreen. It can do pretty much whatever any computer can do, but the lack of wifi means connectivity is limited. The expansion slot is for an SD or CF card (don't know which, I've always used a Palm instead of PPC), on which you can store whatever you like - data, music, pictures, video, etc, up to the capacity of the card. I have several 8GB cards, and they're very useful for holding and transferring files, much better than a USB flash drive because they can be used in more devices, such as PPCs, cameras, etc. A card reader is very cheap. You can use the PPC as an mp3 player, ebook reader, GPS navigator if it has bluetooth, pretty much anything any computer can do, but you can carry it in your pocket.

[madhi19]

Make a "Does it blend?" video for youtube!
If you got an SD card slot you might want to get an SD wifi card!

[amitabhishek]

Why don't you scour xda-developers forums and check if it can be used more than just a paper weight?

[TBerk]

I too have an Axim, in my case it's an X5.

When I got it it had a CF wifi card (w/o drivers) and a 16M CF card as well.


The wifi card turns out to only support 80211b and WEP security so it's been pretty useless to me, despite having sourced drivers for it. An SD or better yet CF wifi card doing at least 'G' speeds and WPA2-PSK protocols would be a great addition. They are out there somewhere but pretty pricey.


I've since bought some 1G SD memory cards (they interchange into the digi-camera as well).

The useful of this unit hasn't really been maxed out by me yet, I'm no where using it fully but so far I've found it useful as an MP3 player, a timepiece (haven't worn a watch in decades), and as a PDA with job assignments, docs, and directions.

The fact that I can load MP3 files on the SD cards by way of Active sync in WinXP helps on long travels. The fact that I don't A() have an automated all-in-one app to sync files and build info packets is a drag as well as B) Ubuntu no-worky with PocketPC as of yet.

Some folks say they have it working but I had whacked at it in 9.04 without much success. (Multisysnc, Synce, etc)

I'm taking it up again now, in a clean install of 9.10 but I am not very encouraged.


berk

[Praxicoide]

I have an X50 and use it for reading pdf books, writing addresses and notes. It's also pretty handy for listening to music.

I've thought about putting Linux in there, but I don't dare flash the ROM, especially since it's pretty useful and I could end up with a broken system instead.

[TBerk]

Yeah, I forgot to add I had found a great deal of free e-book material to read when traveling.

The screen isn't hard let alone softback book sized but it's decent.


berk