Overall, I like the SnapNType. It's a solid product, easy-to-use, and well-made. The SnapNType has a good feel for a keyboard, and is easy on your thumbs. Once you get used to the thumb-typing method, you can enter text rather quickly, although I confess I can still type faster on a conventional keyboard. Ironically, my main reason for buying my first Palm handheld--a Pilot 5000, back in May, 1996--was that it didn't have a keyboard. I was frustrated by not being able to touch-type on the itty-bitty keyboard-based PDAs of the time, like the Casio BOSS and the Sharp Wizard that my colleagues used, and I found the Pilot's pen-based Graffiti to be much easier to use.

The SnapNType's biggest advantage is its space-saving design, which will let you enter text in even the most crowded situations. The SnapNType keyboard looks cool, works well, and is a great way to enter text if you don't type well, are Graffiti-phobic, or are prone to working in places where space is limited. The SnapNType keyboard works with the following Handspring models: the Visor, Visor Deluxe, Visor Neo, Visor Platinum, Visor Prism, and Visor Pro. Although I only tested the Visor version, the SnapNType is also available for the Palm m500 series.

Claire Pieterek is a long-time Palm handheld user. On a mission to ditch her Franklin Planner, she bought her first handheld--a Pilot 5000--in May, 1996. She currently owns a Palm IIIx, a HandEra 330, a Handspring Visor Deluxe, and a Sony CLIE 710C. Owned by an Airedale terrier, she calls the Wired home, and is a student of life, the universe, and Japanese.