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What do you get if you cross a notebook computer with a handheld? The answer isn't exactly clear, but it would probably look something like Palm's LifeDrive.
It's about the same size as Palm's dedicated handheld computer - The Tungsten - but a little chunkier. This is because the LifeDrive is fitted with a 4Gb hard disk that can store the usual array of computer files including photos, music, video and office documents.
Getting it going was simple enough; charge it for three hours, install the Palm Desktop and LifeDrive Manager computer software and connect the device via USB 2.
If everything goes smoothly, the LifeDrive will be recognised and will synchronise with Outlook, transferring contact, calendar and task information. The LifeDrive can also synchronise with a computer via Bluetooth.
The aforementioned LifeDrive manager application is where you can transfer your digital media files. In fact, it's where you can organise the contents of the device by dragging and dropping files into specific folders. It works just like Windows Explorer, so should be familiar to most computer users.
However, it's quite slow to shift data, taking nine minutes to transfer 1Gb of files. Comparatively, our USB 2 key only took three minutes. Nevertheless, it will support any Microsoft Office document without converting it first.
This is because it uses a system called Documents to go, which means any Word, Excel or PowerPoint document will be displayed on screen just as they would on a normal desktop or notebook computer, albeit much smaller.
Any document or file the LifeDrive doesn't support natively, will be automatically converted by the LifeDrive Manager software, although this will increase the time it takes to transfer.
Inside the LifeDrive is an Intel XScale 416MHz processor, which is also found in the Tungsten T5. It's up there with the fastest processors available for handheld computers; applications took, on average, two seconds to load, while switching between calendar views and phonebook entries was instant.
The LifeDrive has 64Mb of program memory but the huge 4Gb hard disk should be plenty for other files. Because it uses a small hard disk rather than flash memory, no data will be lost if the LifeDrive runs out of battery.
Speaking of battery life, the LifeDrive will run for around six hours when using day-to-day applications and about two when watching a video. This will vary depending on how much screen brightness you use, but overall, it's not bad, especially considering there's a hard disk inside.
The LCD screen is almost as big as the device itself and runs at a resolution of 320 x 480 pixels. It's also transflective, which meant we could see the display in bright conditions, and can be flipped to a horizontal orientation by pressing a button on the side.
Other features include Wi-Fi,an SD memory card slot and a lot of applications for viewing multimedia, browsing the internet, sending and receiving email and organising files.
The LifeDrive is a multi-talented handheld computer best suited for those wanting mobile entertainment as well as a serious digital organiser. It's not the smallest handheld computer we've seen, but it's bursting with power, looks great and is well priced considering its features.
See also:
Affordable, compact and versatile, this gadget is one to pack for your holidays 16 Sep 2005
All Palm PDAs
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