Any hope for an old Pocket PC?

Hi guys,

I have a Cassiopeia E-125 from when they first came out. I haven't
been able to do much with it because the connector on the cradle
broke. It was fairly old by the time this happened, so I didn't bother
to see about a new cradle. Before I go about looking for a new PDA, I
was wondering if it was possible to still get any life out of the old
one. Is there any other way to connect it to the PC? My only option is
to transfer data is to use the dial up modem to paste text to Gmail.

Thanks,
Christine

xTenn
Tue Mar 18 18:00:48 PDT 2008


<calzephyr@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:22f694c2-bb26-44f8-aa43-d010d3568e12@c19g2000prf.googlegroups.com...
> Hi guys,
>
> I have a Cassiopeia E-125 from when they first came out. I haven't
> been able to do much with it because the connector on the cradle
> broke. It was fairly old by the time this happened, so I didn't bother
> to see about a new cradle. Before I go about looking for a new PDA, I
> was wondering if it was possible to still get any life out of the old
> one. Is there any other way to connect it to the PC? My only option is
> to transfer data is to use the dial up modem to paste text to Gmail.
>
> Thanks,
> Christine

From reading the description it sounds like the unit itself is okay. You
can still get sync cables (which should bypass the need for the cradle) on
ebay and other places, typically under $10, if you plan on using it.

Of course, you can use a CF card to move data back and forth without using
any cable. Okay for data, not so good for syncing. A concern only if you
plan on syncing.

Todd
Tue Mar 18 19:49:46 PDT 2008

At 18 Mar 2008 17:35:11 -0700 calzephyr@gmail.com wrote:
> Hi guys,
>
> I have a Cassiopeia E-125 from when they first came out. I haven't
> been able to do much with it because the connector on the cradle
> broke. It was fairly old by the time this happened, so I didn't bother
> to see about a new cradle. Before I go about looking for a new PDA, I
> was wondering if it was possible to still get any life out of the old
> one. Is there any other way to connect it to the PC?

Sure- I like playing with old PDAs but keeping track of a bunch of
proprietary cables/cradles is for the birds. Pick up a cheap $5 serial or
USB-to-Infrared dongle on eBay, and connect the E-125 to your PC and
Activesync via the E-125's IR port.

> My only option is
> to transfer data is to use the dial up modem to paste text to Gmail.

For modern PDAs I use Bluetooth, but for my older ones I use IR and never
need to find the right sync cable.

mike
Tue Mar 18 22:02:48 PDT 2008

calzephyr@gmail.com wrote:
> Hi guys,
>
> I have a Cassiopeia E-125 from when they first came out. I haven't
> been able to do much with it because the connector on the cradle
> broke. It was fairly old by the time this happened, so I didn't bother
> to see about a new cradle. Before I go about looking for a new PDA, I
> was wondering if it was possible to still get any life out of the old
> one. Is there any other way to connect it to the PC? My only option is
> to transfer data is to use the dial up modem to paste text to Gmail.
>
> Thanks,
> Christine
I have an E100.
The connector is very flimsy.
Got it twisted or soemthing, took out the charging fet inside
the pda. You can buy a much more modern pda for less than the cost
of a cable...assuming that the socket ain't busted.
mike

--
Return address is VALID!

Scott
Tue Mar 18 22:43:31 PDT 2008

Todd Allcock <elecconnec@AmericaOnLine.com> wrote:
>At 18 Mar 2008 17:35:11 -0700 calzephyr@gmail.com wrote:
>> Hi guys,
>>
>> I have a Cassiopeia E-125 from when they first came out. I haven't
>> been able to do much with it because the connector on the cradle
>> broke. It was fairly old by the time this happened, so I didn't bother
>> to see about a new cradle. Before I go about looking for a new PDA, I
>> was wondering if it was possible to still get any life out of the old
>> one. Is there any other way to connect it to the PC?
>
>Sure- I like playing with old PDAs but keeping track of a bunch of
>proprietary cables/cradles is for the birds. Pick up a cheap $5 serial or
>USB-to-Infrared dongle on eBay, and connect the E-125 to your PC and
>Activesync via the E-125's IR port.
>
>> My only option is
>> to transfer data is to use the dial up modem to paste text to Gmail.
>
>For modern PDAs I use Bluetooth, but for my older ones I use IR and never
>need to find the right sync cable.

I was going to post something similar, but I seem to recall you need
the cable to create a partnership. Otherwise, IIRC, you're limited to
manually copying files to the device.

--
--------- Scott Seligman <scott at <firstname> and michelle dot net> ---------
Foolproof systems don't take into account the ingenuity of fools.
-- Gene Brown

calzephyr
Wed Mar 19 05:21:01 PDT 2008


> I have an E100.
> The connector is very flimsy.
> Got it twisted or soemthing, took out the charging fet inside
> the pda. You can buy a much more modern pda for less than the cost
> of a cable...assuming that the socket ain't busted.
> mike

Hi Mike,

It's just the cradle that was broke, alas. I pulled it off the cradle and
forgot to hit the gray release button. Doh! I was able to find the cable that
xTenn was talking about, so I might give it a shot. I would really like a
Smartphone, but we're locked into a 3 year contract with Bell and can't
upgrade the phones since we have only had them for 11 months. Bell's data
package is expensive anyway. I can have unlimited internet on my cell phone,
but the cheapest data plan is $15 for 2MB. We envy American cell phone plans
a lot :-)

calzephyrgmailcom
Wed Mar 19 05:23:02 PDT 2008

> From reading the description it sounds like the unit itself is okay.

It is, that's why I'm hesitant to get rid of it. I was looking at new PDAs
last night, and if a $10 cable does the trick, I'm all for it! I found the
cable you described happily!

> Of course, you can use a CF card to move data back and forth without using
> any cable. Okay for data, not so good for syncing. A concern only if you
> plan on syncing.

Syncing would not be so bad. We do have a CF card that my husband bought for
it when it was his, but then I would need to get a card reader for
work...it's too bad this thing doesn' t have a USB port!

Thanks so much for your help,
Christine

r_z_aret
Wed Mar 19 05:45:52 PDT 2008

On 18 Mar 2008 22:43:31 -0700, "Scott Seligman" <seligman@example.com>
wrote:

>Todd Allcock <elecconnec@AmericaOnLine.com> wrote:
>>At 18 Mar 2008 17:35:11 -0700 calzephyr@gmail.com wrote:
>>> Hi guys,
>>>
>>> I have a Cassiopeia E-125 from when they first came out. I haven't
>>> been able to do much with it because the connector on the cradle
>>> broke. It was fairly old by the time this happened, so I didn't bother
>>> to see about a new cradle. Before I go about looking for a new PDA, I
>>> was wondering if it was possible to still get any life out of the old
>>> one. Is there any other way to connect it to the PC?
>>

clip

>>For modern PDAs I use Bluetooth, but for my older ones I use IR and never
>>need to find the right sync cable.
>
>I was going to post something similar, but I seem to recall you need
>the cable to create a partnership. Otherwise, IIRC, you're limited to
>manually copying files to the device.

When IR is available on a handheld, it's fine for creating a
partnership. I'm not sure about Bluetooth.

-----------------------------------------
To reply to me, remove the underscores (_) from my email address (and please indicate which newsgroup and message).

Robert E. Zaret, eMVP
PenFact, Inc.
20 Park Plaza, Suite 478
Boston, MA 02116
www.penfact.com

calzephyr
Wed Mar 19 08:33:14 PDT 2008

> Sure- I like playing with old PDAs but keeping track of a bunch of
> proprietary cables/cradles is for the birds. =A0Pick up a cheap $5 serial =
or
> USB-to-Infrared dongle on eBay, and connect the E-125 to your PC and
> Activesync via the E-125's IR port.

Thanks for the suggestion Todd! I found a couple on eBay, but the
seller doesn't ship internationally. I found a couple of brand names
though, so perhaps a local search will do the trick. I had no idea
such a thing existed!

Best,
Christine

Todd
Wed Mar 19 08:55:10 PDT 2008

At 18 Mar 2008 22:43:31 -0700 Scott Seligman wrote:

> I was going to post something similar, but I seem to recall you need
> the cable to create a partnership.

Almost... You're remembering the situation incorrectly.

You needed to establish a partnership via serial or USB before synching
"wirelessly" (meaning, in those days, via WiFi.)

The IR connection (like BT connections today) ARE serial connections and
will allow you to create a partnership. As far as Activesync and the
device is concerned, IR (or BT) _IS_ a cable...

> Otherwise, IIRC, you're limited to
> manually copying files to the device.

I can assure you that my NEC MP780 (ancient HPC) has NEVER been plugged
into my Dell Laptop it's partnered with via a cable- the circa-1999 NEC
came with a serial cable, and the circa-2004 Dell has no serial ports! ;-)

Todd
Wed Mar 19 09:11:18 PDT 2008

At 19 Mar 2008 08:33:14 -0700 calzephyr@gmail.com wrote:

> Thanks for the suggestion Todd! I found a couple on eBay, but the
> seller doesn't ship internationally. I found a couple of brand names
> though, so perhaps a local search will do the trick. I had no idea
> such a thing existed!


A replacement cable would work fine as well, but IR is just more
"universal" if you Change models. Several of my Nokia phones had IR as well,
so my $5 IR dongle saved me a lot of money in proprietary phone data cables
moving Contacts on/off the phones.

IR is disappearing from modern PDAs, just as it did from laptops (for a
good number of years, before BT and WiFi were ubiquitous, many laptops came
with IR built-in to transfer data "wirelessly" !)

These days, Bluetooth does everything IR could do and more, plus has no
line-of-sight limitation, so a year or two ago I added a $10 BT USB dongle
to my "who needs a sync cable" toolkit! ;-)

Werner
Wed Mar 19 10:12:50 PDT 2008

It's very hard to get a BT CF card compatible with MIPS. I've played a lot
with the available CF BT cards but none of them worked on the platform.



<r_z_aret@pen_fact.com> wrote in message
news:j522u3p1oge4elikrfbafm3376suh0n8mc@4ax.com...
> On 18 Mar 2008 22:43:31 -0700, "Scott Seligman" <seligman@example.com>
> wrote:
>
>>Todd Allcock <elecconnec@AmericaOnLine.com> wrote:
>>>At 18 Mar 2008 17:35:11 -0700 calzephyr@gmail.com wrote:
>>>> Hi guys,
>>>>
>>>> I have a Cassiopeia E-125 from when they first came out. I haven't
>>>> been able to do much with it because the connector on the cradle
>>>> broke. It was fairly old by the time this happened, so I didn't bother
>>>> to see about a new cradle. Before I go about looking for a new PDA, I
>>>> was wondering if it was possible to still get any life out of the old
>>>> one. Is there any other way to connect it to the PC?
>>>
>
> clip
>
>>>For modern PDAs I use Bluetooth, but for my older ones I use IR and never
>>>need to find the right sync cable.
>>
>>I was going to post something similar, but I seem to recall you need
>>the cable to create a partnership. Otherwise, IIRC, you're limited to
>>manually copying files to the device.
>
> When IR is available on a handheld, it's fine for creating a
> partnership. I'm not sure about Bluetooth.
>
> -----------------------------------------
> To reply to me, remove the underscores (_) from my email address (and
> please indicate which newsgroup and message).
>
> Robert E. Zaret, eMVP
> PenFact, Inc.
> 20 Park Plaza, Suite 478
> Boston, MA 02116
> www.penfact.com

Todd
Wed Mar 19 21:23:06 PDT 2008

At 19 Mar 2008 18:12:50 +0100 Werner "Menneisyys" Ruotsalainen [MVP -
Windows - Mobile Devices] wrote:
> It's very hard to get a BT CF card compatible with MIPS. I've played a
> lot with the available CF BT cards but none of them worked on the
> platform.


IIRC, my old Ambicom CF BT card had MIPS drivers that I successfully
installed on my NEC MP790 HPC. However, when it died during warranty (as
every Ambicom card I've ever owned has!) they replace
it with a newer revision (and new drivers) that only supported PPC 2K2 and
up (and, therefore, had no MIPS support.)

tc
Wed Mar 19 22:23:50 PDT 2008


"Todd Allcock" <elecconnec@AmericaOnLine.com> wrote in message
news:frsp74$t33$2@aioe.org...
> At 19 Mar 2008 18:12:50 +0100 Werner "Menneisyys" Ruotsalainen [MVP -
> Windows - Mobile Devices] wrote:
>> It's very hard to get a BT CF card compatible with MIPS. I've played a
>> lot with the available CF BT cards but none of them worked on the
>> platform.
>
>
> IIRC, my old Ambicom CF BT card had MIPS drivers that I successfully
> installed on my NEC MP790 HPC. However, when it died during warranty (as
> every Ambicom card I've ever owned has!) they replace
> it with a newer revision (and new drivers) that only supported PPC 2K2 and
> up (and, therefore, had no MIPS support.)
>
>
>
Socket had MIPS support for their cf BT card.
Maybe I'll try it in my Philips Velo 500 (if only my eyesight was up to
reading that awful screen).
I see the driver isn't on their site anymore (HPC2000MIPS.cab).
Terry

calzephyrgmailcom
Thu Mar 20 05:45:00 PDT 2008

Hi Mike,

I sent a note off to an email address on Casio's Canadian website, and a new
cradle can be bought for about $50, if you ever decide you want to get a new
one.

Best,
Christine

calzephyrgmailcom
Thu Mar 20 05:48:01 PDT 2008

One of the advertised features of my old NEC 96** Ready was infra-red. I
remember it came with a remote, but I never used it. Our current laptop
doesn't have a IR port either. We usually pack the laptop bag with every
conceivable cable and whatnot when we travel, so it wouldn't hurt to get one
to toss in there.

Our laptop has a slot for an SD card, but every time I pop it in, it wants
to reformat the disk, so I have to use the card reader. Ah technology, will
the day ever come when I can just *think* what I want the computer to do and
it will do it (and not argue with me :-))

Best,
Christine

Neill
Wed Mar 26 06:06:35 PDT 2008

If you can find some other PPC with IR, then you could transfer all the
useful data to the "other" PPC via IR.
Then sync the "other" PPC with the main PC.
Once you have the data on the main PC you're off and running.

"mike" <spamme9@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:Y71Ej.5130$i54.1133@trnddc05...
> calzephyr@gmail.com wrote:
>> Hi guys,
>>
>> I have a Cassiopeia E-125 from when they first came out. I haven't
>> been able to do much with it because the connector on the cradle
>> broke. It was fairly old by the time this happened, so I didn't bother
>> to see about a new cradle. Before I go about looking for a new PDA, I
>> was wondering if it was possible to still get any life out of the old
>> one. Is there any other way to connect it to the PC? My only option is
>> to transfer data is to use the dial up modem to paste text to Gmail.
>>
>> Thanks,
>> Christine
> I have an E100.
> The connector is very flimsy.
> Got it twisted or soemthing, took out the charging fet inside
> the pda. You can buy a much more modern pda for less than the cost
> of a cable...assuming that the socket ain't busted.
> mike
>
> --
> Return address is VALID!