.KEYWORD snapntype
.FLYINGHEAD PRODUCT REVIEW
.TITLE SnapNType Keyboard gets thumbs up
.OTHER
.SUMMARY If you’re jealous of Handspring’s Treo and its thumb-type keyboard, you can get the same functionality without swapping for an entirely new handheld. Contributing Editor Claire Pieterek reviews the SnapNType Keyboard which will give your Handspring Visor or Palm m500 series handheld that very same thumb-type capability.
.AUTHOR Claire Pieterek
Are you suffering from a case of Treo envy but just can’t persuade the powers that be that you absolutely need to replace your Palm handheld and your cell phone? If you have a Handspring Visor or Palm m500 series device, you’re partially in luck. You can get TT-Tec’s nifty SnapNType Keyboard, distributed by RipTide Enterprises. You’ll at least look half the part, and you’ll have a handy way to enter text quickly into your handheld to boot.
The SnapNType keyboard is pictured in Figure A.
.FIGPAIR A The SnapNType keyboard is a compact unit that snaps directly onto your handheld’s HotSync port.
The SnapNType snaps onto your handheld’s HotSync port, and it covers the Graffiti/silkscreen area, as shown in Figure B.
.FIGPAIR B The SnapNType covers the Graffiti/silkscreen area.
To use it, you type with your thumbs, just as you would with a Treo or Blackberry device. The four application buttons are also covered, but TT-Tec has provided for this functionality on the SnapNType itself.
There’s also a funky little thing called the FaceBoard which offers some of the lesser-used symbols, plus a whole flock of emoticons, which is the geek term for those ubiquitous smiley faces found in email, since so many of us can no longer differentiate between humor, irony, sarcasm, and the like. The FaceBoard is pictured in Figure C.
.FIG C The SnapNType FaceBoard lets you drop emoticons into your memos, as well as some of those symbols you don’t use every day.
I wrote this entire review on the SnapNType (with the exception of the pictures) just to see what it was like. I wanted to know whether I’d really be able to deal with a Palm handheld without Graffiti. Some of my first impressions were of minor device driver issues, such as the always-on Caps Lock arrow, and the need to enable and disable the SnapNType manually. I found these a little annoying, so I contacted TT-Tec and got a new driver, which resolved my issues. The Caps arrow now appears when you shift, instead of always being on. There’s now a symbol indicator that appears when you hit the Symbol button. I like that, because when I first started using the SnapNType, I always hit the Symbol button instead of the Shift key. The gripe about enabling and disabling the driver was simply one of laziness. I never had to do that with other keyboards I’ve used, so why, I reasoned, should I have to do that with this one?
I recommend against leaving the SnapNType on your handheld continuously, as it tends to drain the batteries. You’ll have to take the SnapNType off to HotSync anyway, so there you go.
Overall, I like the SnapNType. It’s a solid product, easy-to-use, and well-made. The SnapNType has a good feel for a keyboard, and is easy on your thumbs. Once you get used to the thumb-typing method, you can enter text rather quickly, although I confess I can still type faster on a conventional keyboard. Ironically, my main reason for buying my first Palm handheld–a Pilot 5000, back in May, 1996–was that it didn’t have a keyboard. I was frustrated by not being able to touch-type on the itty-bitty keyboard-based PDAs of the time, like the Casio BOSS and the Sharp Wizard that my colleagues used, and I found the Pilot’s pen-based Graffiti to be much easier to use.
The SnapNType’s biggest advantage is its space-saving design, which will let you enter text in even the most crowded situations. The SnapNType keyboard looks cool, works well, and is a great way to enter text if you don’t type well, are Graffiti-phobic, or are prone to working in places where space is limited. The SnapNType keyboard works with the following Handspring models: the Visor, Visor Deluxe, Visor Neo, Visor Platinum, Visor Prism, and Visor Pro. Although I only tested the Visor version, the SnapNType is also available for the Palm m500 series.
.BEGIN_SIDEBAR
.H1 Product availability and resources
For more information, visit http://www.tt-tec.com/html/Products/T101.htm.
For more information on the SnapNType for the Palm m500-series, visit http://www.tt-tec.com/html/Products/T111.htm.
For more information on Palm handhelds, visit http://www.palm.com.
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.END_SIDEBAR
.BIO Claire Pieterek is a long-time Palm handheld user. On a mission to ditch her Franklin Planner, she bought her first handheld–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.
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