alphasmart Neo

[wellington1869]

Lately I've been salivating over this:
http://alphasmart.com/products/neo_In.html



I'm sure many of you know of this device. Its the closest thing to a modern version of a simple typewriter for word processing.

Simplicity is obviously its main virtue. Distraction-free writing. Instant on/off, automatic saving. No internet, email, or other distractions. You type and when you're done you plug it into your computer and it 'sends' the text to your open word processor window.
I think it even doubles as a pass through keyboard.
Ultra portable, and lasts 700 hours on batteries.


I had the alphasmart Dana for a while (very similar, tho the Dana uses palm OS and is a bit slower). I prefer the Neo's ultra simplicity even to the Dana. What both share though is a great keyboard. Its rubber dome I'm sure but for a dome board its one of the crispest dome keyboards ever. Really not bad to type on, considering how tiny and light the device itself is.

I sold my Dana a while back for about $100 to a friend (who loves it). It wasnt a mistake to sell though, I really prefer the Neo over it.

A lot of folks in academe (particularly in english departments for some reason) really like this thing. It would be great if all you're doing is straight text or straight notes. Not so great for editing, obviously. I find myself recommending it to English dept folks (students and faculty both) and they're always delighted with it.

The downside is: Its $200 bucks ($242 retail, $219 on sale now, and regularly $180 to $200 used on ebay). Even used ones on ebay approach that price. Its pricing is rather "inelastic" as the economists say. There's always a market for it, there's very little to go wrong on it. Its very sturdy and it lasts forever. So even used ones dont get much of a discount.

So I'll wait till I have a job, but would love to keep it bedside for quick notes, or for hammering out rough drafts of chapters.

[wellington1869]

p.s., If you want a cheaper version, its predecessor, the alphasmart 3000, sells for about $70 to $80 used on ebay. However a common complaint with those is that the keyboards suck on them, and the used ones especially come with sticking keys and stiff keys. The 3000 tho is the first usb version (the previous ones were ADB).

I actually bought an even earlier version on ebay (the alphasmart Pro) which sell for about $25 used, and I saw the same issues with keyboard, it was unusable. Gave it away free after a while.

Heard no such complaints about the Neo though. Both Neo and Dana were upgraded and have a different keyboard.

[bhtooefr]

I've used an AlphaSmart 2000 once. (I thought they had PS/2 2000s, FWIW...)

Also, my former employer was considering (not for long, though) purchasing a fleet of 2000s for the students.

The Dana is still Palm OS 4.1, right?

[wellington1869]

I've used an AlphaSmart 2000 once. (I thought they had PS/2 2000s, FWIW...)

oh yea, I think the 2000 (or one version of it) came with both ADB and PS2

The Dana is still Palm OS 4.1, right?

AFAIK, ya.  

The dana was alright, the main beef I had against it was that its slow compared to the neo. Plus I had the wireless one, which was on the one hand amazing that they crammed a web browser and email client into it - and on the other hand, defeated the point of having a simple device!

The 2000's are usually for sale on ebay too, I think around $50 or so. But with all those older models I've heard so many complaints about stiff and lousy keys on used ones. (And my own experience with the AS Pro kind of confirmed that).

[bhtooefr]

What browser did they have on the thing? Because the only two Palm OS 4.1-compatible browsers I can think of would be the Eudora browser (which was text-only,) and Blazer, which required a proxy server that is no longer available in the 4.1-compatible versions. (And it sucked, too.)

[wellington1869]

What browser did they have on the thing? Because the only two Palm OS 4.1-compatible browsers I can think of would be the Eudora browser (which was text-only,) and Blazer, which required a proxy server that is no longer available in the 4.1-compatible versions. (And it sucked, too.)

I forget the name of the browser (this was 2 or 3 years ago and I havent used a palm product since then, lol). But it was one of the popular browsers that the palm handhelds were using. It might have been Blazer. There was also a popular email client that all the palms were using, I forget the name. I imagine the alphasmart website would have that information though.

Another nice thing about the Dana was that it had one or two memory card slots, so you could expand its memory infinitely (and that also provided yet another way to transfer your files to your pc). It also had infrared, and also you could sync it with its wifi chip as well (which amazingly enough actually worked if you initially wrestle with it for a bit).

But all that (and the palm OS apps you could install on it) really defeated the purpose of a simple device, for me anyway. Also its startup time wasnt "one second" as it is with the neo.  You would actually have to wait about 10 or 15 seconds, which isnt much but again takes it out of the 'instant on' category.  
I did love its keyboard though.

I imagine future versions of these will have e-paper screens (improving both battery life and contrast). I'm sure they will rock.

[xsphat]

I have a 3000, and yes, the keyboard is foul. I was looking into the Neo (Morpheus?) but I don't think the functionality of it, or lack thereof, can compete with a laptop or netbook.

I don't care that it costs less either — when I bought my brand new 3000, I paid $160 for it, and I made a couple thousand off articles I wrote on it in about a month, so even though I would never use it again, I keep it for memories and respect.

[megarat]

I played around with a few models of the Alphasmart (Pro, 2000, 3000), all picked up cheap via eBay.  I kept the Pro the longest, simply because I liked its "slab" form factor better than the "ergo-swoopy" form factor of the 2000 and 3000.  Here are some general impressions:

I really wanted the AS to work, as it would be a dream of mine to have a portable electronic writing device that doesn't require an entire laptop and modern operating system as life support.  That said, I was never really happy with this device as a writing instrument, and it never got past a few test drives.

From 1999 through 2004 my work had me involved with a fair amount of international travel -- Seattle to Johannesburg, that sort of thing.  The AS was wicked for that specific circumstance:  when you're away from mains power for 18 consecutive hours and you want to get some writing done.  It was also very convenient for spontaneous text entry, so I can see why students/reporters/etc. find a good use for it.  If you need to record some text observations while you're on a hot-air balloon for three days, you can't beat the AS.

But I think the AS is best (or rather, only good at) text generation, where you don't need to look back.  The AS becomes problematic with: large bodies of text (>5000 words), navigating a large document, doing re-writes, etc.  It's very tempting to use the model of "generate all text w/an Alphasmart, upload to laptop, edit/format/add to it there," but then you (a) end up hauling two devices around, (b) need to juggle your workflow between these two devices, and (c) can get confused about which versions are on which device.  I tried this, and found that it was easiest just doing the writing the laptop to begin with.

This workflow exacerbated by the fact that with the ADB and PS/2 versions, the data transfer was essentially a one-way street.  You could get the text from the AS to the computer, but not the other way around.  (Unless you had special software, and the transfer still took forever, like 300 baud or less.)  Does anyone know if bidirectional data transfer can happen with the USB model?

My own writing projects tend to be on the long side (20k - 200k words).  I commonly need to reference other parts of the document as I work, and I'm over-reliant on the re-writing process.  This means that I would require that the AS be the home for the entire project, and working completely within the AS wasn't tenable for me.  Alas.

I would love to see a hybrid device, combining the Alphasmart with a Kindle-like eReader.  I don't care for fonts and formatting, per se, but a larger screen than 4x40 characters and other modern capabilities (easy navigation, etc.) would be brilliant.

[xsphat]

Does anyone know if bidirectional data transfer can happen with the USB model?

Yes, it works similar to syncing a Palm, and it was pretty quick IIRC.

[wellington1869]

never got past a few test drives.

ya actually that was my experience with the AS Pro too. I mean the keyboard on it blew, but it was more than that, I didnt use it all that much. That said, whenever I dont have a device like that handy, I tend to miss it. I do feel like it fills a niche in my work flow. If its keyboard had worked well, i might have used it more.

It's very tempting to use the model of "generate all text w/an Alphasmart, upload to laptop, edit/format/add to it there," but then you (a) end up hauling two devices around, (b) need to juggle your workflow between these two devices, and (c) can get confused about which versions are on which device. I tried this, and found that it was easiest just doing the writing the laptop to begin with.

this is true, but lately I've been using the q10 program which is a small simple text editor without much navigation or editing control, and that model (write and dump) has been working for me lately (it doesnt always). Maybe thats why my thoughts have wandered back to the neo lately.

You could get the text from the AS to the computer, but not the other way around. (Unless you had special software, and the transfer still took forever, like 300 baud or less.) Does anyone know if bidirectional data transfer can happen with the USB model?

with the neo, I believe they still have that software program with which to upload text to the neo (I think its called the "getutility" or something along those lines). I dont know if the speed has improved with usb. In any event I'd mostly be dumping text from neo to laptop only.

I would love to see a hybrid device, combining the Alphasmart with a Kindle-like eReader.I don't care for fonts and formatting, per se, but a larger screen than 8x80 characters and other modern capabilities (easy navigation, etc.) would be brilliant.

you're right that at that point you may as well use a laptop (or one of the new netbooks).

It definitely is a niche device and isnt for everyone (or for every work flow). Even for me, my work flow changes depending on what I'm working on, and on some projects I wouldnt be able to use it at all.

Its definitely a luxury to have, one of those things that would be "nice to have" under certain special circumstances. Its definitly not an essential component.  But if I had a job I'd probably pick it up, lol.

[wellington1869]

So I wound up buying back my alphasmart Dana from my friend (to whom I had sold it about 3 years ago). Lol.  He recently bought a couple of netbooks so I guess he doesnt need the Dana anymore, so it worked out well. It actually has a decent keyboard on it (a lot of people compare it to a thinkpad keyboard). Its a great device for hammering out "first drafts" on, since you cant really edit on it, it forces you to write in a stream (and without internet and email distractions, lol).

(As for keyboards, I've been pretty much sticking to my ('quieted down') endurapro; and I'm still waiting for someone to sell me a TP2, but thats about it. Pretty happy for now. )

[megarat]

I thought I would provide an update to this thread, considering that I've picked up a Neo and it defies my historical opinions about Alphasmarts.

The Neo completely outclasses the Alphasmart 3000 and the earlier models.  The big issue used to be the small screen (4x40 character-based dot matrix).  The Neo's fully dot-matrix screen is terrific, and some user-hacked fonts can provide you with 8-11 lines of text on the screen at once.  (I use the eight-line font for composition, and the 11-line font for editing/rearranging.)

The Neo's keyboard is much better than its predecessors as well.  It's rubber dome, but in the top quartile in terms of quality and feel.

It's not a perfect device, and I could give lots of armchair suggestions for what their next model should be like (let's start with more memory and a bigger screen), but I'm surprised by how delighted I am with this thing.  It has definitely facilitated some writing as of late when it was otherwise difficult to get over the activation energy barrier.  I fully understand why the Neo has developed a cult following amongst writers, while the 3000 and earlier never really broke out of the education market.

In short, I'm now an appreciator of this technogizmo, and I'm glad that I scrounged one up.  (Technically I scrounged up three, all from a local school, but one doesn't work, and I'll be selling the other.)  It's not for everyone, but it really is the right gadget for some people and some tasks.

[Shawn Stanford]

What are the advantages (other than, perhaps, price) of an Alphasmart over the current crop of cheap netbooks. This assuming a decent keyboard on the netbook...

[timw4mail]

What are the advantages (other than, perhaps, price) of an Alphasmart over the current crop of cheap netbooks. This assuming a decent keyboard on the netbook...

That's assuming a bit...scissor switches are almost as bad as regular rubber dome keyboards these days. I can't stand to type on my Eee PC keyboard anymore.

I don't see any advantage for one of these over a netbook, besides battery life.

[Shawn Stanford]

I'm being generous in my definition of 'decent'. Let's call it a semi-standard layout and good-sized keys.

[timw4mail]

I'm being generous in my definition of 'decent'. Let's call it a semi-standard layout and good-sized keys.

Good-sized keys aren't that hard to find. Layout is a bit more iffy, but not too hard, either. That's why I just thought you mean key feel.

[megarat]

This isn't really a laptop, notebook, PC, or computer of any type.  It's frequently referred to a 21st century typewriter, which seems appropriate, as it's strictly for text entry.

In theory there's a way to develop "smart applets" for this thing, but the company isn't making the SDK public, which is a shame.  (I would love to create a word.net-based dictionary for this thing.)

Advantages of the Neo for text entry over laptop-type solutions:

-- Runs for over 700 hours (!) on three AA batteries
-- Instant on
-- Extremely light (I don't know offhand, but probably less than 2 pounds)
-- Solid state and ridiculously rugged
-- Has some decent word processor features, making it fairly competitive
-- Many cite the "no frills" (i.e., no internet access to distract you, the small screen forces you to focus, etc.) aspect as an advantage, but that's a matter of taste; I wouldn't mind a few more features in this area, personally

There are plenty of caveats and room for improvement, but most of them are obvious (e.g., more memory, bigger screen, and easier way to offload files, such as SD cards), or minor and detail-oriented, and may go away with the next software update.  (E.g., the word processor, when you select a block of text and resume typing, it doesn't delete the selected text and replace it with the new text; rather it retains the selected text and abuts the new text after it.  Oh, and there's no "Undo".)

It doesn't, by default, accept an external USB keyboard, which is a shame.  I do think about modding one of these into a micro-tablet that can accept an external keyboard, but that's way down on my project list, and will probably never get past the feasibility study stage.

All in all, for bulk text entry, it kicks any laptop's butt around the block without breaking a sweat.

[Hak Foo]

It feels like a Tandy Model 10x rethought.

I have one sitting on a shelf; I'd love to hollow it out and make it into a shell for my netbook, but I can't bear to scrap working gear.

[microsoft windows]

Personally, I'd rather just use a typewriter and get it over with.

[megarat]

It feels like a Tandy Model 10x rethought.

Sort of, but for only the text-generating crowd.  I have an M100 and one of the features that makes it so awesome is its programmability, and that it connects it virtually anything.

This, you have some basic features for entering text, but that's it.  (I'm not counting the classroom-specific features that aren't  meant for the writing crowd.)  I really wish it were directly programmable (or even indirectly programmable with an SDK), but if wishes were fishes ...

Personally, I'd rather just use a typewriter and get it over with.

Get what over with?  I'm not sure what you mean by this.