SONY CLIÉ PEG-TJ25

The Sony Clié PEG-TJ25 (£151 inc. VAT) is the entry-level handheld of the Clié range, and as such is aimed at the first time buyer or those users who are looking for an easy-to-use device with little in the way of added connectivity and expansion.

PERFORMANCE
The silver-effect casing of the TJ25 is dominated by the touchscreen, which has three inches of viewable area and supports 320 x 320 pixels. We reviewed the more expensive TJ35 in Issue 55 (January 2004) and were disappointed by the quality of the display. However, there was no such fault with the TJ25: the screen is bright and clear and lacks the banding on the bottom of the screen as found on the TJ35.

Under the screen are four quick-activation buttons that allow access to the Calendar, Address Book, To Do and Memo functions. Between these keys is a scroll wheel that can be used to locate an application quickly in the menu, as well as being useful for navigating the screen. Additional buttons on either side of the scroll wheel can also be used to navigate applications, and we found that they worked well as direction keys when playing games.

The power-on button, located on the righthand side of the device, also sports a useful hold function, which means that it won’t accidentally switch on in your pocket or bag, saving battery life. Another nice addition is the removable battery located on the back of the chassis, which is a feature not usually associated with entry-level handhelds.

Powered by a Motorola iMXL processor running at 200MHz, the TJ25 has sufficient power and, in use, we found that applications loaded quickly. Such a processor is not ideally suited for running video applications, but as a simple PIM device the TJ25 is more than up to the task. With 16MB of flash memory (11MB accessible to the user) the TJ25 offers a reasonable amount of space to store files and extra applications. The Memory Stick Pro slot on the top of the unit allows for expansion as well as the addition of extra peripherals.

Running Palm OS 5.2.1, the TJ25 takes advantage of the usual Sony interface which adds an extra view to the standard one, referred to as the Sony Launcher View, it also adds a scrolling bar and six extra quick access launch buttons. Users can switch this interface off if they prefer the standard Palm look. The basic array of Palm applications are all pre-loaded with Sony adding applications like Clié Viewer and Clié Memo.

SACRIFICES
In order to keep the cost of the TJ25 down to a minimum, sacrifices have been made. The most obvious is the lack of a docking cradle, with the device linking to your laptop using a connector on the base of the unit and a cable supplied in the box. While this is not a problem, it can make setting up the synchronisation more time-consuming. Once the synchronisation software has been installed, users will find that the Palm OS will intuitively synchronise with Microsoft Outlook, which has become the number one contact manager and desktop diary for most users.

With connectivity becoming higher on most users’ agendas, the lack of any form of wireless functionality does detract from the usability of the TJ25. If such a function is desired then we would suggest looking further field.

The Sony Clié PEG-TJ25 doesn’t bring anything new to the range, but it’s an affordable and highly usable device. While it will not suit users looking for a connected device, it is an excellent all-round organiser.

RATING: 7

PRICE: £129/£151 (EX/INC. VAT)
PROCESSOR: MOTOROLA IMXL 200MHZ
OPERATING SYSTEM: PALM OS 5.2.1
MEMORY: 16MB (11MB ACCESSIBLE)
EXPANSION: MEMORY STICK PRO
SCREEN: 320 X 320 PIXEL 16-BIT COLOUR
BATTERY: LITHIUM-ION
LINK: USB
SIZE: 76 X 111 X 12MM
WEIGHT: 139G
CONTACT: 0870 542 4424 WWW.SONY.CO.UK