Palm Tx :: Overview
- Release date: 12.Nov.2005
- Wi-Fi
- Intel XScale 312MHz CPU overclockable to 416MHz
- No microphone :(
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Compatibility with i-Blue 757 Pro GPS
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At the time the i-Blue was introduced (in 2006), there were bugs/issues on the GPS which made it uncompatible with the Palm Tx. However with the latest BT firmware on the i-Blue 757 it is compatible.
Instructions:
(i) Go to Palm Tx Bluetooth preferences (Prefs)
(ii) set Discoverable: Yes
(iii) Click on Setup Devices, then Trusted Devices, then Add Device.
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Select "Show: Nearby devices", then the i-Blue will appear as iBT-GPS. Add it.
If the iBT-GPS doesn't appear, soft-reset your Palm Tx and retry. Also make sure the GPS is turned on (either Nav or Log).
If you have problems with interop between the GPS and the Palm Tx, contact Transystem Inc. support with your i-Blue serial number, they will tell you if you need a BT firmware upgrade or not.
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(iv) In Tomtom 6, go to Change preferences, then Show GPS status, then Configure, and choose Other Bluetooth GPS receiver.
No microphone on the Palm TX
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Why did they choose to remove the microphone from the Palm TX? The device is equiped with the necessary hardware: it has a working Analog to Digital converter (that is unused), there is space for a microphone on the bottom, and a microphone is cheap <1$ when buying in large quantities. Someone suggested it was to reduce the feature-set of the Palm TX in order to make the LifeDrive more appealing. This might be true! Maybe they had a meeting in which they were trying to find ways to lower the price of the unit by removing features... well done now the Palm TX has not microphone :( This is so misleading because nowhere on the Palm website they plainly state that this device has no microphone! When you see a Wi-Fi PDA, the least you expect is a microphone. The general reasons to buy a Wi-Fi PDA is to surf the web, do Voice over IP and get emails. Fortunately you can buy a third party external microphone. Anyway it's bad to amputate such a nice device when you realize it would probably made it the best ever Palm device out there for 2005-2007. With a built-in microphone, the Palm TX would have been strong competition to multimedia-rich Pocket PCs and would have made Palm grab more market over Pocket PCs. Ripping the mic on the TX might have made LifeDrive more useful but globaly reduced Palm overal products value. Let's face it, Wi-Fi + microphone + slim device is a sweet spot and Palm doesn't provides.
Product Specifications
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Processor: Intel XScale PXA270C5C312 running at 312MHz
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The processor is capable of MMX-like optimizations. However most applications will run under the 68k emulator thus with limited advantages of the CPU features. Yes the Palm OS does not run natively most applications. It runs an emulator which loads the applications. However if you are willing to, nothing stops you from writing your Palm OS application natively for the Palm Tx (with compatibility limited to Intel XScale PXA processors). This is one of the reason Linux-on-Palm kind of projects are interesting, since they run applications natively (see: hackndev.com). However it's not there yet as there is no Wi-Fi, and no Bluetooth (soon will be there).
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LCD: 320x480
Bluetooth: 1.1
Wi-Fi: 802.11b