Today, we’ll take a look at the PIM functionality of the TX and the iPod. But before I start with this part, here are two additional pictures that compare the screens:



As you can see, the screen of the TX is less bright than the screen of the iPod, even at highest brightness level.

Comparing the PIM features of both devices was not as easy as I thought. The iPod should be able to synchronise both calendar and contacts with Outlook. But my iPod refused to sync the contacts. I really don’t know if this is a generall problem or a specific problem on my computer. I’ll have a closer look at some iPod forums, but last week I didn’t have the time for that.

The following PIM functionality is provided by the iPod: calendar, contacts, todo, notes and alarm clock. Here are some pictures (iPod on the left, TX on the right):

Calendar


Contacts


Notes


Alarm/World clock


As I already told you, contacts and calendar can be synchronised with Outlook. Well, “synchronised” is maybe the wrong word for that. Because you cannot edit your data on the iPod. So “copy you Outlook data to the iPod” perhaps is the better expression. It’s the same with memos: you can not edit them, but you can move any *.txt file to the iPod’s HD (into folder “notes”) and read it on your iPod. The alarm clock works very well. It can wake you up with a simple alarm signal which is loud enough for my ears or with music. Therefore you have to choose a playlist and plug in some speakers into the headphone plug. The iPod doesn’t have built-in speakers…

Do I have to tell you that the TX can manage your PIM data better than the iPod? The biggest advantage of the Palm is it’s touchscreen. So you can enter new data or edit existing entries. This means real synchronisation with your desktop. But the iPod can keep a save copy of your data and maybe come in when your Palm is out of order. The memo application is not bad at all, a Palm can not read *txt files without additional software AFAIK.

P.S.: You can find part 1 of my comparison here.