Sony CLIE T415

Slim, sexy, fine, and monochrome

by Shawn Barnett

October 22, 2001

Having fielded many requests for my opinion comparing the Sony handhelds with devices from other Palm OS licensees, I can say that the one sticking point to come up again and again is the thickness of the existing Sony units compared to Palm's V and m500 line. Whereas I personally like the way the other Sony units fit in my hand, with a narrower profile and deeper back than the m500, those for whom this was a chief concern can now relax.

The Sony PEG-T415 is here, with its smooth contours and slim styling, evocative of Porsche design. From these photos, I also get the impression of the PADD computer tablets seen so often in television's Star Trek series.

Its aluminum body is of one piece construction, save for the door at the lower back, through which the components are fed to assemble the device, it measures .39" thick, thinner than an m500. What it has that no other ultra-slim device has is a 320 x 320 pixel monochrome screen. Also on the list of new features is the CLIE Remote Commander software that converts the unit into a remote control, and the Sound Effect Generator that replaces standard system beeps with user-selectable tunes. It's bundled with Documents to Go Standard Edition, and accepts both the PEGA-SA10 MP3 adapter and the PEGA-MSC1 Memory Stick Camera Module, for capture of images 320 x 240 in size. 8MB RAM and 4MB Flash rounds out the offering. Aimed at the same business users that the Palm m500 and Visor Edge pursue, it will be priced at the comparatively low US$299.99

-Shawn Barnett

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