[kittyhawk]

Hi...

Just came back from shopping for a PDA and I found out that they are being phased out!

Best Buy still has the Tungsten E2 that I was interested in, however Circuit City told me that they are being phased out, and what will replace them is a mini pc that will be about 800.00!

My question for those of you that have them, are the programs such as Davis' drug guide, the Tabor enc. and the nursing diagnosis for example, still be of use down the road, or are they constantly upgrading the info, that a few years down the road that info will be obsolete?

I would still get it if I thought it would be like any other reference material say for example the actual drug book that we must get for nursing, but not if the info in it changes so fast that there are new updates every year.

Can anybody help?

TIA

[MikeyJ]

THey are definitely not being phased out. They are definitely not as popular as when they first came out; however, I wouldn't say they are being phased out. If anything, the PDA's integrated into cell phones are becoming more popular.

PDA's are required at my nursing school and we have the Nursing Central bundle, and I find it incredibly useful. And there are new programs being put out all the time -- PDA's are definitely not going anywhere anytime soon.

[Jilaweez]

When I went into Best Buy they told me that they were off the shelves for a short time because they were revamping them and coming out with newer versions. I recently went back and they did have a few in stock. Technology is always changing....who knows what will be here next year or tomorrow for that matter. I'm still trying to switch my vhs videos to dvd..

[Megsd]

On my PDA my school had us buy ePocrates, which includes a drug guide, among other things. You actually purchase a subscription to it, and every time you sync your PDA to your computer, it uploads all new updates (including brand new drugs). I prefer this because if I had, say, a 2006 drug guide on my PDA, it might be missing things that came out since I started school, but with ePocrates I always have the most up to date information.

I agree that PDA/cell phone combos are becoming more popular, but I still think PDAs will be around for a while yet.

[allthingsbright]

Originally Posted by kittyhawk

Hi...

Just came back from shopping for a PDA and I found out that they are being phased out!

Best Buy still has the Tungsten E2 that I was interested in, however Circuit City told me that they are being phased out, and what will replace them is a mini pc that will be about 800.00!

My question for those of you that have them, are the programs such as Davis' drug guide, the Tabor enc. and the nursing diagnosis for example, still be of use down the road, or are they constantly upgrading the info, that a few years down the road that info will be obsolete?

I would still get it if I thought it would be like any other reference material say for example the actual drug book that we must get for nursing, but not if the info in it changes so fast that there are new updates every year.

Can anybody help?

TIA

I agree, I think cell phones w/ integrated PDA's are the new standard!

[KrysyRN]

It appears as the traditional PDA is being phased out. I bought my Palm T/X at Circuit City last Fall. A few weeks ago I went back there to buy a wireless keyboard for it only to find out that they sell no PDAs or accessories for them. An employee said that people were buying the PDA-cell phone combo instead. This is worrisome because if PDAs are being phased out, then maybe batteries for particular PDA models will be too.

My opinion is to save your money and spend it on the most current book editions of the drug guides, lab manuals, etc. Or go to your clinical facility's intranet site to access current drug or lab info, if the facility offers this.

[mommyRN07]

I think possibly they are being phased out, and being replaced with Pocket PCs. I have a pocket-pc from Dell, it was about $350, and it is just like a PDA only has online capability. Slightly more expensive than the PDA, but totally worth it, in my opinion. I have epocrates, Davis, Tabers, etc.

[suzanne4]

A Pocket PC and the PDA are essentially the same thing. Most PDAs can interface with the internet as well. And they are also Blue-Tooth enabled and everything else. You just happen to have the Dell version of the Palm.

Just like some like differences in manufacturers of laptops. Some buy Dell, some get HP, some get Toshiba, etc.

But they do the same work. Pocket PC and PDA are the same, just some have different operating systems, like Windows and Mac, but they still do the same work and are used for the same things.

[mommyRN07]

Traditionally, PDAs did not have online capability. Pocket-PC's have always had online capability.
Anyhow, I'm not saying anyone has to get a Dell, I'm just saying that BestBuy recommending a "mini-computer" that costs $800 is, in my opinion, not necessary and/or stupid. If she wants to get a Toshiba or whatever, I don't care, I'm just saying whoever told her the "PDA" was being phased out was most likely referring to the non-internet capable type. Because I do believe that the non-internet capable types are, in fact, being phased out, which could be why some people think the terms are interchangeable.

[Jamie2887]

I bought the "nursing constellation" boundled set off of skyscape.com and also the lipponcotts procedures program, instead of going with the Palm pdas (which do not run with windows, but instead their own palm program, which I could probaly never figure out) I bought a cell phone/pocket pc...I have cingular, and bought their 8125 model, and love it! you can buy any software off of skyscape and have them put it on an SD mini card, which slides right into the phone! and instead of having a bulky PDA, and a cell phone, you just have one unit, so it saves space...mine also has my calender so i can input any assignments due, ect. THe other advantage of course...not having to carry 3+ books to clinicals in the fall.