Warranty & Accessories when ordering

Jim B · 02-20-03, 12:10 AM

Hey all,

First post, am just about to order my first ever PDA, and have decided it would be the Axim.

1. Would upgrading to a 2-yr or 3-yr be a worthwile thing? I am not sure what it means, can only find info on pc warranties.

Warranty

1-Year Advance Exchange Warranty
2-Year Advance Exchange Warranty [add $89.00]
3-Year Advance Exchange Warranty [add $149.00]

2. Are screen protectors or extra stylus's needed?

Accessories

None
Screen Protector 12-Pak [add $29.00]
Stylus 3-Pak For Dell Axim X5 Handheld, Customer Install [add $13.00]

3. Why would I need another cable, and would it be better to find an aftermarket one? I would like to have a car charger for long road trips or camping.

Cable Help Me Choose

USB Travel Sync Cable [subtract $29.00]
USB Cradle
USB Cradle and USB Travel Synch Cable [add $20.00]

4. Has anyone found need for an additional battery?

5. Any other insight that might be of help before I place the order?

BTW, these are prices are in Canadian peso's.

Thanks in advance for helping someone who lends definition to the term "Newbie".

Jim B

falgun · 02-20-03, 12:46 AM

1. warranty is totally up to you myself got a included 1 year.

2. definatly get the xtra stylus package, mainly because the one it comes with sort of seems flimsy to me but still a good one. As for screen protectors they are a DEFINATE YES, but i do not know the quality of the one by dell. But the one I would reccommend are the ones made by WRITESHIELD, they are not STICKY ones but just CLING (sort of like CLING WRAP), and work great, others would probably back me up on that.

3. Most people who get extra sync cable use there axim at home and work so they sync everything at home and at work, or anyone who has laptops they sync to it, plus you can charge through the sync cable as well.

4. Extended batteries are great if you do a lot of movie watching, MP3 playing or are a HEAVY PPC user. as for me i use it for work and occasionally and when it is not being used it is being charged.

5. make sure you read reviews and this would be something for you, and if you do order it start getting a archive together of programs you want to try, and also get a SD card (around 128MB is good) and a CF card (if funds available of course). Most people will use the SD card for putting all there programs on there, as i do and they will use the CF cards to put all there movies and mp3s on there. But remember shop around for these cards cause they are expensive at DELL.

I hope this helped somewhat!

Mike C · 02-20-03, 01:15 AM

As far as the sync cables, the plain usb cable is all you really need if you want to save a few pesos (sub $29). It connects directly to the bottom of the Axim, and the power plug will likewise go directly into the Axim instead of plugging into the cradle.
It's actually more convenient when picking up the unit while connected, which I do a lot.
The cradle is pretty nice looking, but does nothing besides stand up the Axim (and charge an extra battery if you have one). Otherwise, if you did get an extra battery, you'd have to swap batteries on the Axim and then charge it with the power cord directly. The standard battery lasts a good while, and more-so if you keep the back-light low and the volume down a bit. Might want to try it first, and maybe get an extra battery later if you find it necessary.

Screen protectors ... go with something other than Dell, like Brando ($10us) or WriteShield ($?)

Warranty ... weigh against the cost of just buying a newer improved unit down the road.

Deputy · 02-20-03, 02:57 AM

(1) I don't think a multi-year warranty is as important with a $300 PDA as it is for a $2000 system. You can always buy more time during your warranty period. I went with 1 year.

(2) Definitely get screen protectors. The Dell ones are fine, lots of people talk about writeshields being the best. I bought the 3-pack stylus so I have them if I loose/break the one that came with the system. Would not be fun to have to wait for Dell to ship when I needed them.

(3) I have the cradle for synching with my desktop upstairs, an extra charging cable for downstairs, and a cigarette lighter travel charger for my truck.

(4) I bought a second battery just in case. Mainly for long trips in my truck with the GPS CF card.

(5) Buy as big a Secure Digital and Compact Flash memory cards as you can afford. I recommend at least 256MB each.

Jim B · 02-20-03, 09:24 AM

Thanks All,

Guess I will forgo the extended warranty for now.

Will source some screen protectors like WriteShield right away. I will order some extra stylus's with the Axim.

Will also look for a car/travel charger as well.

Still thinkin' about the extra battery, am usually around a vehicle if away from house, but........

I will definitely be buying some memory cards.

Putting together a list of software to try sounds like a great idea, will start that list right away. Will check out the approriate forum for that.

A good case is a must to as I am around cunstruction sites lots and would not want to just keep it in my pocket, so would like a belt clip on it.

Regards,
Jim B