Beaming across platforms

[mjbarger]

I was always under the assumption that the new PPC could beam items and accept items from Palm, or Sony devices. I just recently purchased 2 Axim 400mhz devices, one for me and the other for my wife, and was hoping to beam my addresses from my Sony over to the Axim. Everytime I tried, the Sony would say that it could not find a device to beam to.

Any suggestions? Not a big deal since I went ahead and reentered all the data by hand, a little time consuming, but its done. Other than this little flaw, I love the new device.

[heysquirt]

I have been beaming my address over from my M125 to my Axim and it has been a real pain. I get the message that it could find a device and then like the fourth try it works. I would love to know why it does this. I beamed one from my cell phone and it had no problems.

[JakeRich]

The protocols for Palm and MS beaming are different. There is a product called Peacemaker from Conduits that lets you do that. I use the Peacemaker Pro version.

http://www.conduits.com/products/peacemaker/

[DoctorWorm67]

I had a Sony PEG-SL10 before purchasing the Axim, and i have been able to beam information like addresses. to-do list items, and dates from date-book with ease. I have tried to beam info back to the Sony from the Axim, but that has not worked.

[enob]

I have been successful beaming to and from HP/Compaq IPAQ models 3870 and 3955 models and to my laptop running Win XP Pro. They is a known problem with Infared and some types of lighting..

[dinograd]

Okay folks we had a similar thread going before the old forum board crashed and died. Check out this link on Dell's forum (http://forums.us.dell.com/supportforums/board/message?board.id=dellpda&message.id=2146&h ighlight=beaming+problems#M2146)about beaming issues, there are several people experiencing problems, here is my tale.

I have tried beaming to and from the Axim with a few different pda's including the following: Palm M125, Handspring Visor, & iPAQ 3835. I have tried various distances always aligning the IR ports on a flat surface, which by the way should not have to be done that way. When I had my Visor and I wanted to beam to other Palm devices, I made sure the IR port faced the other device and beamed... no fuss. Yes, I have beaming turned ON, on all devices.

First I tried with the M125 and my Axim and it rarely works. Every once in a while it does transfer the contact, note, or whatever I'm attempting to beam. Most of the time though, if I'm sending from the Axim to the M125 the Axim just times out. If I go from the M125 to the Axim the M125 displays a message that it cannot find a receiving device. The Handspring Visor had very similar results to the M125.

I also tried beaming back and forth with my friends iPAQ 3835. It did work but seemed slow to me. From there I decided to try between the M125 and the iPAQ and it worked seamlessly, very fast. It was even better than trying to beam between the two PocketPc devices. By the way, the iPAQ does not have Peacemaker installed on it.

After calls to Dell with no resolution, I decided to install Peacemaker just to see if it would have any effect. I installed and I experienced exactly the same results. Beaming is still not working. I have since removed the program from my Axim. Yesterday I called Dell again and demanded that something be done. I will be receiving my replacement unit today. If I experience the same problems I am definitely thinking of returning my Axim for good and getting my money back. I know the problem has to do with Dell's hardware, because PocketPc 2002 is fully capable of doing what I'm trying to do. If anyone has ideas of what to do to help I would appreciate any constructive comments. I'll keep you informed of what happens with the replacement. Happy Holidays everyone!

[dinograd]

Okay so here's my update. Sorry it has taken me so long to post but after several broken promises from Dell to supply me with a replacement, I finally received my unit today (31 Dec.). I charged the new battery for four hours and have begun testing the replacement unit. As of right now I'm not very happy and am contemplating returning both the units for a refund. I again tried beaming back and forth with the Palm and am experiencing basically the same results as before. Without any consistency I can get them to beam back and forth but it is VERY slooowww!! In order for the Axim to see the Palm, the two devices have to be very close-like a couple inches.

So I then decided to try beaming between the two Axims. It works pretty much every time but is extremely slow!! I'm not sure how to proceed from here. Any constructive input is welcome. I am unhappy with the technical support I've received and am thinking of drafting a letter/email and sending it to the customer service people. I only have a few more days before my 30 days is up, so I will probably decide by Friday. I can't believe that there are only a few of us experiencing the poor performance problems when beaming.

I realize this is a new product but that doesn't excuse poor performance, horrible tech. support, and help me with my problem. Please someone help us!! Thanks. Happy New Year to all!!

The only beaming I have treid with my new Axim is to my old Palm V which my wife has inherited. I would have to say that the two devices need to be much closer than two Palms would require but they do seem to communicate. The problem I am experiencing is that the Palm does not recognize the file format it is receiving from the Axim.

Anyone got any solutions for this?

[SkyVoice]

This is discouraging news altogether. I have heard that the Axim had a weakness in its ability to beam and would not work as well as a universal remote as do some other PPC devices. I personally think Dell reduced beaming capability in favor of the more urgent and emerging technologies and rightfully so. However, I have been twisting and racking my brain about a decent way to get current data from my Palm to my Axim when it arrives. I am saddened by the fact I may have to manually enter all the data... I hope to find out otherwise but have embraced the idea I may have to do this manually. This is my only heartburn with hearing about the beaming shortfall. I sure as hell wouldn't be returning this unit due to beaming shortfalls because I truly believe beaming isn't going to be around long... even bluetooth will eventually be the remote control device of choice before we know it.

I am anxious though to learn of any solution. I'll be following this thread closely. Thanks for all the info posted for PPC newbies like me.

Ron

[dinograd]

Ron,

You will not need to manually enter all your info. into the Axim. Just install Chapura Pocket Mirror from the cd that came with your Palm, hotsync your Palm with Outlook, sync your new Axim with Outlook, and you're set!! :D

In my opinion, bluetooth has a way to go before it will replace IR on handheld devices. Besides, I am not real concerned with using it as a remote control. I want to have the reliable ability to beam appointments, contacts, etc. with my wife who has an M125 as well as my friends who have other handheld devices. Beaming information back and forth is what it is all about! Folks, don't get too upset about my statement about bluetooth, it's just that they keep saying it is "going to revolutionize the industry" but really has not taken off like they thought. My two cents...

[SkyVoice]

dinogard...

Thanks for the info. I do not know why I couldn't remember Pocket Mirror program. Too many of my brain cells bombarded over the years with utterly useless information I suppose. :)

I just have to change the configuration in my IIIxe from Outlook Express to Outlook perhaps. I'll have to take a look at that pretty closely. When I originally setup my Palm I had it use Outlook Express instead of Outlook because I liked the smaller program much better. Live and learn I suppose. :D

Many thanks for assist! :)

Ron