My review of the Motorola MPx200 has finally been posted here. I have been busy and I have a huge review backlog so this has been delayed a couple weeks. I am very impressed with the Motorola MPx200 and it has been a great phone to use on a daily basis, but it doesn't get a Geek.com pick yet because of the missing Bluetooth and SDIO. However, if you are looking for a Smartphone and don't need to connect to other devices or care about WiFi, GPS, etc. then I think this is a great choice for many people. Those of use who are into mobile devices generally want a package that includes it all, but this may not be realistic for your average consumer.

I just returned from a business trip to Long Beach where I was inspecting an aluminum catamaran ferry boat. I now have to write a couple more chapters in the book I am working on and then get back to my review backlog. I wish I had more time to devote to mobile devices, but it is just a hobby of mine so it takes a back seat to other obligations.

I have now been using the Zodiac for just about a week and have to say I am impressed with the hardware. It feels great in my hands and the button placement is great. It is handy having 2 SD slots at times to copy photos off my camera's SD card onto the Zodiac's SD card. The device is very responsive and everything easily zips around. I love playing Stuntcar Extreme and wish there were more games like this for the device. I also like playing my XCade games again, but sound is still missing. You do not get an email program with your purchase, which is a bit sad. However, I already purchased SnapperMail and it works in the full landscape mode on the Zodiac. Web browsing via Bluetooth is great and I am happy with many other applications included on the device. MyBible by Laridian also works in full screen mode along with Agendus.

I was disappointed to discover that DocumentsToGo 6 does not work in the full screen mode and I get an error when I try to use native Office files. I'll have to try out QuickOffice to see if that works any better. I also am disappointed that I can't use Fitaly or MessagEase input methods and am stuck with Grafitti 2 which I haven't used before. I may get a Stowaway IR keyboard that I can use with multiple devices.

I am leaning towards keeping the device since the HUGE battery, 2 SD slots, large display, analog controller, and 128MB RAM are more compelling than other Palm models on the market. My real concerns are the lack of a community, lack of optimized games and applications, and no company history. However, I also used the Sidekick and was quite impressed with their products and company. I also like to cheer for the underdog and try out new gadgets.

I sold my UX50 last night and while I took quite a hit, I at least avoided the ebay fees. The buyer is really getting a MINT device and should be very happy.

I received my Zodiac2 last night and am loading it up with software right now. I am putting it all in RAM for now since I have so much to play with and will keep my 256MB SD card for music and videos. The device feels quite nice and is pretty thin, yet feels solid with its black metal casing. The display looks awesome and I can't wait to use it some more and see how the applications and games look on it.

I just posted my final wrap-up of CES here on Geek.com. It included most of what I saw at the show.

I went to a couple of presentations, but spent most of my time in meetings and browsing the show floors. I walked a ton and saw some amazing things in the home entertainment arena.

Personally I would love to get, and may if I can save up the funds, a Mirra backup server. This is a very simple, yet powerful backup system for the home user and the 80GB model is $399.

I also ordered and will be receiving my Zodiac tonight so I will be swamped with even more review materials. I wish I could do it full time and catch up on my reviews, but I only get a chance to review stuff during my commute and late at night when everyone else is in bed:)

I will post a ton of details of my CES trip later tonight, but in the meantime I wanted to post that I have decided to leave the Sony CLIE camp and ordered a Tapwave Zodiac last night. I saw these at CES and actually was all set to order a Tungsten T3, but the 128MB of RAM for the same price was too compelling. I never really use the CLIE Digital Video Recorder and am just a bit tired of the Memory Stick and want to standardize on the SD format.

I posted ads on ClieSource and PDAStreet, but will post elsewhere tonight to give people a chance to buy my gear before posting it up on ebay in a couple days. If you are interested in any of the following, please email me at ppcsolo@yahoo.com. I am selling it all for very reasonable (cheap) prices too.

CLIE UX50 with 2 year CompUSA TAP
Extended battery for CLIE UX50
SanDisk 512MB Memory Stick
Sony CLIE Digital Video Recorder

I finally made it down here to CES after fighting the crazy crowds at SeaTac due to the snowfall we had a couple days ago. I'll be posting some brief information on Geek.com, but will probably go into more details here and provide a "personal" touch. Due to the flight delays, I unfortunately missed the Bill Gates keynote address and was bummed because I really wanted to hear it first hand. I read the coverage and see he focused on the "connected" home, SPOT, Smartphones, and some other initiatives in the consumer market.

I thought I could make it even though the flight was late and saw that the map showed it as about 3 blocks from my last shuttle bus stop. Then I started walking and after 20 minutes at a fast pace found I went about 1 and a half blocks. The hotels and buildings are incredibly massive here in Vegas and I am just blown away by their proportion. I think my family would definitely enjoy a trip down here sometime.

I did make it to the Digital Experience event at the Mirage. They have the white tigers in a glass cage in the hotel and some cool aquariums. I found I hadn't RSVPed for the event so I waited in line to get authorized. I then was able to get in and later that night remembered that I did reply, but they told me I wasn't qualified because I wasn't full time press. Oh well, I crashed the party and got in:) It was great to meet about 15 people that I have been emailing with in the past for product reviews and news and put a name to a face. There were over 85 vendors there and it took me about 2 and a half hours to get around once and talk to people. I can't imagine how long it will take me the next 3 days on the full floor.

One of the coolest pieces of hardware was the OQO ultra-portable computer that runs a full version of Windows XP in a handheld size device. The hardware was loaded up and running there at the booth and I was very impressed, although the $2,000 price tag knocks it out of my own consideration. I saw some Bluetooth headsets and a few other gadgets as well. A few software vendors were there and I was happy to see that TomTom is coming out with a Palm version of their outstanding navigation software. Handmark makes awesome software and is coming out with a new wireless services application in March that looks great! DataViz makes products for Pocket PC devices now and said they will be updating DocsToGo to support the UX50 and Zodiac displays. It was great fun and I just love meeting people face-to-face.

I am staying with Bill Landon and Harvey Lee from MaximumPDA at a TrendWest condo and we stayed up until about 2:30 am chatting. I'll update you later on Thursday from the show floor.

Happy New Year everyone. I finally finished my book input so I can now get back to writing reviews and updating my blog. I am working from home today because we are getting socked by snow here in the Puget Sound area today and I have about 4 inches at my house already with 8 inches forecasted.

I am about to purchase a new Powerbook after evaluting both Apple and Windows laptops, but will be waiting until after I go to CES this week to see if there is anything else out there that piques my interest. I leave tomorrow afternoon for CES and can't wait to check out all the cool gear. I have quite a few interviews and demos setup and will be browsing the show floor as well. There are press events each night so it really should be a BLAST.