Comparing the Pocket PC With the Palm

You're either a Chevy Suburban fan or a Honda Civic lover. You enjoy being able to drive up over your neighbor's mailbox and lay waste to their tacky three-foot tall hedge and extended family of lawn gnomes. Or, you like smaller bills at the gas pump and the ability to park on city streets. The same distinction can be made between PDA owners.

Microsoft (MSFT Quote) has a nitro-burning, off-road handheld operating system that has garnered a lot of press for taking market share from competitor Palm(PALM Quote). Meanwhile, the Palm OS still dominates the PDA market with its simple design, great gas mileage and good handling. If you're in the market for a handheld, you'll have to pick sides.

If you want a PDA that is a mini version of your PC, Pocket PC devices suit you best. Be prepared to pay a bundle for all that functionality, however. If you find your PC horribly overequipped and would rather carry around a light, elegant device that you can expand to fit your needs but doesn't immediately assault you with features, the Palm OS is right for you. For most people, that makes Palm the obvious choice.

The Palm OS is found on Palm handhelds, obviously, as well as Handspring and Sony devices. The Pocket PC OS is available on Compaq, Hewlett-Packard, Toshiba, Casio and AudioVox consumer PDAs. ...