By Claire Pieterek
Can't find the case to give your Palm m505 the right look? Tired of the same old leather or metal gizmos that hide your m505 from the world? Do you want something that's out of the ordinary but gives you a clear view of your Palm m505's screen? Then Parallel Design's Personality Pack for the Palm m505 (at http://www.paralleldesign.com) is for you.
This product is the follow-on to the popular Personality Pack for the Palm V-series, pictured in Figure A, which ranged from the mild Crystal Ice and stealthy Carbon to the wild Blueberry, Strawberry, and Grape Gel.
FIGURE A
This is the Personality Pack for the Palm V series. (click for larger image)
The picture in Figure A gives you an idea of how the Personality Pack attaches to the Palm handheld. No glue or Velcro is needed. The Personality Pack for the Palm m505 snaps into the utility slots on the back of the device.
The new Personality Packs for the Palm m505 don't have the same rainbow range of color options as their predecessors, which makes for a much classier look, more befitting the workplace. The m505 Personality Packs come in six styles: Carbon, the stealthy all-black version; Graphite, a smoke-colored lid with a black inset; Crystal; a clear lid with black inset; Sapphire, a cobalt-colored lid with black inset; Sapphire Ice, a clear lid with cobalt inset; and Diamond, the all-clear version. The Carbon Personality Pack is pictured in Figure B.
FIGURE B
The stealthy Carbon Personality Pack for the Palm m505 comes in classic black. (click for larger image)
The clear Crystal Personality Pack is pictured in Figure C.
FIGURE C
The clear Crystal Personality Pack lets you see the screen right through the cover. (click for larger image)
The nice thing about the Crystal, Diamond and Sapphire Ice versions is that you can read your screen through their lid without flipping them up. In many of the more rugged industries, a good, solid cover for your Palm handheld's screen is a major advantage. Being able to still read the screen while the cover is in place is even more ideal.
Another plus about the Personality Pack is that no Velcro, glue, or other adhesives are needed. The clever design uses the utility slots on the back of the Palm m505 to clip the Personality Pack right on. You don't need to take the Personality Pack off when synchronizing, which is another big plus. You can also access the power button and the SD slot without removing the Personality Pack, and the Personality Pack doesn't interfere with beaming, either. The Personality Pack is a very durable product, making it ideal in work environments where the Palm handheld might be dropped, struck, or exposed to water or large amounts of dust. You'll also attract a lot of curiosity and compliments when you use the Personality Pack!
If you're a Palm m500 user and you've been waiting to run out and buy this product, unfortunately you're out of luck. I did some field testing of the Personality Pack for the Palm m505 on a friend's Palm m500. It just doesn't fit. According to Parallel Design, the color screen used by the Palm m505 makes it just a bit thicker than the Palm m500, so it wasn't possible to make a single Personality Pack model that fit both the m500 and the m505.
Overall, the Personality Pack for the m505 has plenty of pluses. You don't need to take it off to perform most of the vital, everyday things you need to do with your m505. It looks great, it's durable, and it's reasonably priced at $17.99. What more could you ask from a little bit of personality?
Claire Pieterek is a long-time Palm handheld user. On a mission to ditch her Franklin Planner, she bought her first--a Pilot 5000--in May, 1996. She currently owns a Palm IIIx, a HandEra 330, a Handspring Visor Deluxe, and a Sony Clie 710C. Owned by an Airedale terrier, she calls the Wired home, and is a student of life, the universe, and Japanese.
