Does it run NetBSD?
Downvote? Seriously? It was a serious question. NetBSD runs everywhere, even 40 years old vaxen, so why wouldn’t it run on Psion?
It's an 8086. Well, an NEC V20.
No MMU = no Unix.
27 years later and the Psion 3a is still wonderful (2020)
281–289 of 289 posts
Re: 27 years later and the Psion 3a is still wonderful (2020)
#282Earlier quoted context omitted.
I have a Gemini. The keyboard - you know, the main selling point - as often as not just goes 'thud' when you try to press a key rather than depressing and registering. The software was abandoned in a half-assed state after one revision. They strung me along for a good 6 months on shipping the USB-C hub and case post-Gemini delivery until I finally told them I was willing to give up on one of the two if they'd just se…
I still have my Gemini and use it regularly. Its keyboard is not merely fine but as good as money can buy from any vendor in the 21st century. This, for example, was entirely written on my Gemini: https://www.theregister.com/2022/10/05/rust_kernel_pull_requ... My Planet hub is in frequent use and, for example, was used in the creation of all 3 of these articles: https://www.theregister.com/2023/03/10/thinkpad_x1c_g10…
When I wrote to Planet complaining that my keys so frequently rotated in their sockets that they would often entirely fail to depress, their response was that I should wiggle them a bit.
I'm glad you like yours. I don't. Disappointment from delayed beginning to ignominious end.
Re: 27 years later and the Psion 3a is still wonderful (2020)
#283Earlier quoted context omitted.
I still have my Gemini and use it regularly. Its keyboard is not merely fine but as good as money can buy from any vendor in the 21st century. This, for example, was entirely written on my Gemini: https://www.theregister.com/2022/10/05/rust_kernel_pull_requ... My Planet hub is in frequent use and, for example, was used in the creation of all 3 of these articles: https://www.theregister.com/2023/03/10/thinkpad_x1c_g10…
When I wrote to Planet complaining that my keys so frequently rotated in their sockets that they would often entirely fail to depress, their response was that I should wiggle them a bit. I'm glad you like yours. I don't. Disappointment from delayed beginning to ignominious end.
I do wonder at such wildly divergent experiences.
It was a fairly small production run, I am reasonably confident, so it seems very odd that some units should be well made with no major flaws, and others apparently awfully shoddy.
Ah well. Sorry you had a bad time. I love mine and am considering buying a 2nd to try Sailfish on, and maybe a spare, too.
Re: 27 years later and the Psion 3a is still wonderful (2020)
#284Earlier quoted context omitted.
I could have written your comment! Though I sold mine. I followed pocket reform closely but the thickness of it, combined with the price, put me off. It’s not the same class of device as Psion, Gemini, or the UMPCs.
Just for balance: I have a Gemini. I love it and still use it. The keyboard remains world-class, best of breed in any pocket-sized device. The OS is dated but still works fine and connectivity to Dropbox, gDrive, OneDrive etc. is very handy and mostly missing from desktop Linux. As a pocketable laptop replacement it is unequalled, for this writer.
Don’t get me wrong I’m very glad they built it, happy to share some risk to get a niche product to market, and used it as a daily driver for some time.
Curious though, did the whole unit bounce, with the screen wobbling back and forward, when you typed?
Re: 27 years later and the Psion 3a is still wonderful (2020)
#285Earlier quoted context omitted.
Just for balance: I have a Gemini. I love it and still use it. The keyboard remains world-class, best of breed in any pocket-sized device. The OS is dated but still works fine and connectivity to Dropbox, gDrive, OneDrive etc. is very handy and mostly missing from desktop Linux. As a pocketable laptop replacement it is unequalled, for this writer.
Don’t get me wrong I’m very glad they built it, happy to share some risk to get a niche product to market, and used it as a daily driver for some time. Curious though, did the whole unit bounce, with the screen wobbling back and forward, when you typed?
Nope, it's pretty firm. The design isn't as good as the Psion 5, but it's OK. I mainly place it on my lap on something like a book, or preferably, on a desk or tabletop. Then I can type on it at about 60 WPM, which is about 3/4 of my speed on a full-sized keyboard such as my preferred IBM Model M.
I occasionally can't remember where a character is, but I tell myself it's where it would be on a Psion and 20th century muscle memory kicks in and I just hit that combo.
Re: 27 years later and the Psion 3a is still wonderful (2020)
#286Earlier quoted context omitted.
Don’t get me wrong I’m very glad they built it, happy to share some risk to get a niche product to market, and used it as a daily driver for some time. Curious though, did the whole unit bounce, with the screen wobbling back and forward, when you typed?
Nope, it's pretty firm. The design isn't as good as the Psion 5, but it's OK. I mainly place it on my lap on something like a book, or preferably, on a desk or tabletop. Then I can type on it at about 60 WPM, which is about 3/4 of my speed on a full-sized keyboard such as my preferred IBM Model M. I occasionally can't remember where a character is, but I tell myself it's where it would be on a Psion and 20th century…
Interesting. I've heard other reports of the hinge wobbling. I wonder if there was a production issue with the material or geometry or something.
Found this random video on youtube. You can see it wobbling at 15 seconds, though mine was more accentuated. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opmb6jbeBY4
Re: 27 years later and the Psion 3a is still wonderful (2020)
#287Earlier quoted context omitted.
Nope, it's pretty firm. The design isn't as good as the Psion 5, but it's OK. I mainly place it on my lap on something like a book, or preferably, on a desk or tabletop. Then I can type on it at about 60 WPM, which is about 3/4 of my speed on a full-sized keyboard such as my preferred IBM Model M. I occasionally can't remember where a character is, but I tell myself it's where it would be on a Psion and 20th century…
Interesting. I've heard other reports of the hinge wobbling. I wonder if there was a production issue with the material or geometry or something. Found this random video on youtube. You can see it wobbling at 15 seconds, though mine was more accentuated. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opmb6jbeBY4
Interesting. No, I haven't noticed that. Maybe if one particular unit's keyboard works well, you don't have to hit the keys so hard, so it doesn't push down on the hinge mechanism.
Psion's own hinge mech was far better, but PlanComp only licensed the keyboard, not the case. I proposed a fatter "pro" model with a bigger battery that was the same size, shape and form factor as the original, so it'd fit in original cases. I still have several.
I was shouted down by Americans whose internal airlines apparently have or had some stupid limit on the size of battery you can carry on board. In Europe any battery over a certain limit has to be carried in the cabin, so if it fails the crew can extinguish it.
Re: 27 years later and the Psion 3a is still wonderful (2020)
#288I had a Psion 5, an amazing device. It had the same apps as the 3, if I remember correctly. The keyboard was astoundingly good. The keys, if larger, would make an excellent normal keyboard. What I really loved about the 5 was that it could run Java. I think it never got past JDK 1.0.2, or maybe 1.1. But it was clunky to use. I wrote a little shell for it, which provided basic functionality, including much simpler com…
You do not remember correctly, I'm afraid. The 5 ran a whole new OS with all new apps. No backwards compatibility whatsoever.
Sure, but it was the same categories, Calendar, for example.
Re: 27 years later and the Psion 3a is still wonderful (2020)
#289Earlier quoted context omitted.
You do not remember correctly, I'm afraid. The 5 ran a whole new OS with all new apps. No backwards compatibility whatsoever.
Sure, but it was the same categories, Calendar, for example.
Um. Well, yes, broadly, true, but then they are largely similar across most PDA type devices. Address book or more general database, calendar/agenda/scheduler, notepad or jotter, maybe a file manager, then often some kind of minimal office-productivity tools or viewers...