Sony Clié PEG-NX80V

If you've been wanting a general-purpose digital camera but what you really need is a PDA, Sony seems to have the answer—the Sony Clié PEG-NX80V ($600 street). The NX80V is the most highly evolved of the Clié NX series, with a large 320-by-480 display, a usable (but not lovable) QWERTY keyboard, a Sony Wireless LAN CF slot, an MP3 player, a voice recorder, AV remote control, and saving the best for last, a truly usable 1.3-megapixel camera.

The Palm OS 5.0–powered NX80V uses Sony's Launcher application instead of the traditional Palm home screen—a more graphical interface that is better looking and easier to use. The image-friendly Clié has a 200-MHz DragonBall CPU and 32MB of ROM and RAM. The 8 ounce, 0.8- by 2.8- by 5.25-inch (HWD) NX80V uses the now-famous swivel screen, so you can use the PDA in clamshell format, exposing the tiny—albeit functional—round-keyed keyboard, or you can spin the display 180 degrees and fold it flat so the whole unit resembles a conventional PDA.

In addition to the Memory Stick slot, the NX80V has the same proprietary CF slot found on several other Cliés (such as the NX70V and NZ90, for example). The CF slot is primarily for the $150 Sony Wireless LAN card. Other Wi-Fi cards, which are usually a bit cheaper, will not work. Some other CF memory cards will work, but not all. We had success using a Lexar Media card but could not one from Viking Components. And despite the CF capability, you can play MP3s stored on Memory Stick or MagicGate Memory Stick media only.

We had the most fun using the NX80V's integrated camera. Located in the hinge, the camera swivels to protect the lens and lets you capture images in front of or behind the PDA. A software button turns on the capture light, located just to the left of the lens. The light, which stays on until you turn it off, isn't powerful enough to take pictures in a darkened room, but it can brighten the scene in a normally dim room from up to 12 feet away. Another software button controls the 3X digital. An integrated filter will cut the light in overly bright scenes such as those with full sunlight.

We found the camera easy and pleasant to use. Images take about 1 second to record. The video recording mode has a low resolution of 160-by-112, with playback of up to 320-by-240. The best feature of the camera is its 1.3-megapixel resolution. Once you've captured your images, you can display them on the PDA, edit them with Sony's useful but minimal Photo Editor software, or transfer them to a conventional PC for further editing and for printing.

For those who don't need to print pictures but like the other NX80V features, the similar Sony Clié PEG-NX70 ($500) has a more common 640-by-480 camera with no light. The NZ90 has a 2-megapixel camera with a more conventional integrated flash, but the 10.4-ounce PDA is heavy, and at $800, costly. $600 for the Sony Clié PEG-NX80V isn't a giveaway, but considering that you get a truly usable digital camera in addition to a great PDA and an MP3 player, this new model should find plenty of acceptance.