Jesse Ross | jesseross.com

I’m having a hell of a time deciding whether the prototype phone I build should have a display or not. On the one hand, a faceless phone would be pretty damn sweet… if it works. And by works, I mean works flawlessly. I’ve been less than impressed with voice dialing and voice commands in general. If voice dialing on my phone isn’t perfect, I will seriously kill the whole project in a fit of immense rage and violence. But, if it does work, it would be pretty damn sweet, and I would love it.

On the other hand…

I wanted this phone to be an IM device that does voice, not simply a phone you don’t have to pay monthly charges on. In that case, I’d need a screen to do texting and to view presence info. A display is easier for people to deal with, more obvious. But, it’s also more expensive, more hardware, more wiring… and in the end all I’ll have done is created a PDA that is locked down to doing only IM tasks. Lame.

So, I need some guidance. I’m not sure what the smartest route to go is.

Maybe I just make two phones…

So I finally caved. I really wanted to get one of the new Nokia 770s. They are brilliant little machines that are great in so many ways: nice form factor, Linux-based, Wi-Fi enabled, internet-centric, inexpensive. But, unfortunately, I didn’t jump on the bandwagon fast enough; by the time I was ready to buy one (to have for my trip to London before Christmas), they had sold out in the States. Damn.

But, I really need something for my trip. In case the Big Work Project blows up while I’m over there, I need to be able to do minor text editing and receive emails and IM the office. So, I caved. I had been talking about getting a Zaurus 5500 for a few years now, and they’re pretty much the next best thing to a 770. Yes, the one I want is a few years old, but it already has had tons of open source software written for it. And, it also is great is so many ways: nice form factor (with a hardware keyboard!), Linux-based, CF slot for Wi-Fi card, inexpensive (used from Amazon for $200). It’s more general purpose than internet-centric — I’m a bit worried about web browsing on it — but it looks as though GAIM will run like a charm. And baby, Jabber is alls I needs.