MobileTechReview Forum, News and Reviews: Need some advice/recommendations

Hello,

I'm in the market for an inexpensive, somewhat no-frills PDA (prefer to keep it under $200 if I can for the base model, maybe $300 tops). Previously I used to have a Palm Vx, later gave it to the stepson, it got munched. We got him a new Tungsten E for graduation last spring, and it seemed like a newer updated version of the Vx... does pretty much everything I want a PDA to do, w/ one exception... some sort of network connectivity. Right now, I'm not *sure* I need/want that sort of feature in a PDA but I'm a little apprehensive about getting a model that I can't readily upgrade via an SD card. From what I've read here so far, the Tungsten E SD slot doesn't really have enough power to make it work, and/or it drains the battery at a frightening rate, correct? Sounds like Bluetooth is similarly out, due to drivers, right?

Any other suggestions in this range? The camera and video on the Zire 72 don't do much for me; nice to have handy but we've already got a pretty good digital camera. The Zire 21 and 31 look feasible but I worry about the screen being lo-res compared to the Tungsten E. Not exactly watching movies on it, but still... Primary uses is anticipated to be as a PIM, running some very specific applications (hi-res/color nice but not even necessary for them), maybe some odds-n-ends games (chess, strategy, etc.) to kill time, etc. Something that fits in an aluminum hard case is a must.

Any suggestions or perspectives would be much appreciated.

Thanks,

Monte