Dual Action Palm

great Dooney & Bourke case

Dual Action stylus not so great

I recently treated myself to some toys for my new Palm Vx; a Dooney & Bourke leather case, and a Dual Action stylus, both Palm branded. The case was because I didn't like the flop and sag of the original Palm flap; the Dooney & Bourke case is much more rigid, and has a front and back flap. Fitting it was an extrememly tight squeeze; it has since, over the course of several weeks, softened up slightly, but is still a tight fit, and covers the display without sagging. One disadvantage is that the front cover wants to fall over the display unless you hold it back, which means that you can't realistically use the Palm V in its cradle. But this doesn't bother me, and overall I'd say it was a very good purchase. The stylus is a different matter: it has a thin clip that slides into the stlus groove on the Palm, with the bulk of the stylus hanging outside. It looks OK on a Palm V, but daft on a Palm III or VII, despite claims on the packaging that it is suitable for them. The end of the stylus twists to expose a micro ball-point pen; too hard a twist separates the stylus into two halves. The clip is also an extremely tight fit in the groove, to the point that I was hammering the stylus against a table to extract it over the first week of usage; that I managed it without breaking a nail was a surprise. However, as it too loosened up, I found that the clip will now pull easily off from the rest of the stylus, and it is likely to come adrift in my pocket.

Words and design by:
Paul Lynch
Last updated: January 24, 2000