Electronic Dictionaries versus PDA

hello,

I am studying Japanese in Australia.
I need to buy an electronic dictinionary and was looking at wither:

- casio Ex-Word XD-A9800 or older model (for cost)

or

- Canon WordTank V320 or V330

or

- one of the Axim PDA's availabel from the Japanese Language Tools (JLT) website (http:www.japaneselanguagetools.com).

Any comments or advice.
There are a number fo threads about electronic dictionaries but really interested in some comments about the PDA offerings from Japanese Language Tools.

Note:

- I do not mind the japanese-only menus on thr Casio, although it may take me longer to learn it. Can always ask a friend for some help.

- the kanji input is easier/more forgiving, i believe on the Canon WordTank. but not sure what the difference is.

- I believe the PDA option from JLT is relatively easy to use, although may be a bit slower to use as it is not dedicated to the task, being a PDA with software installed.

- don't really need a PDA for anything, although maybe the GPS on the axim (with suitable GPS attachment) may be useful.


maybe someone has used both the PDA and an electronic dictionary?

thanks in advance

Hi,

I bought a Casio XD-GF9800 (one of the top models) last year. Guess what: this is one of the best thing's I've ever bought. It's amazing, especially the kanji recognition (stroke order doesn't matter).

It cost me some 30-something thousand yen, but the reason I bought it over a Y16 000 model is that I needed both Japanese and English dictionaries (and this thing has Oxford Thesaurus, Advanced Learner's Dictionary, Dictionary of English... you get the idea). The cheaper models only have Oxford's Advanced Learner's Dictionary, as far as I know.

Anyway, what I'm trying to say here is, if you don't need an EN-EN dictionary and thesaurus, buy one of the Casios in the 10 000-20 000 range (assuming that meets your budget). You'll get a very nice dictionary with amazing kanji recognition.

By the way, the menus are very easy to navigate, so don't worry about that.

I am/was in the same situation as you. I've had a Dell axim x51v for 5 years and its great. I download podcasts (using prssreader) from japanesepod101.com, I use a program called KingKanji to help me learn to write kanji (http://gakusoft.com/ ) and I use a Japanese dictionary (can't remember which maybe http://www.lingvosoft.com/LingvoSoft-Learners-Suite-English-Japanese-K...). All great stuff, but that PDA is like 5 years old (still good today, can play Quake 3 at 20fps). Anyway, I decided to get a replacement device so I bought a Benq S6 for $200 which runs Windows XP (so basically its a full pc, only slight bigger than an Axim). What this gives me know is I can run the Wakan dictionary (http://wakan.manga.cz/ which is great and has example sentences), I can use handwriting recognition to help me learn new kanji using window's XP built in IME pad mode, I can still use KingKanji since it has a windows version, I can still get my japanese podcasts, I can install Comic Rack to try and read manga in japanese and various other things (play japanese playstation games etc). So while I was very happy with my Axim, I think the Benq S6 is just more powerful and full pc capabilities. I bought mine here http://www.linkecomputer.com/products/1007867/S6/BenQ/ but just wait till it goes down to $200 since the price seems to fluctuate (I think they got some bulk buy thing going on)

I have owned both a wordtank and the JLT pda. I highly recommend the pda for serious study of Japanese. It has proved an invaluable tool to me living in japan and is far more efficient than the wordtank. Well worth the expense.

Thanks for the replies, Rad, mobile otajku and amy.

The BenQ S6 looks good but not easy to find in australia, unfortunately. I was looking for something like this, too.


Rad, thanks for the +1 on the ex-word. Since i live in Australia I need to buy online, and there are few choices. If I get the ex-word it will have to be a slightly more expensive one as that is pretty much all that is available. still, it will last me a long time, then. thansk for the comments on the ease of use of the menus

amy, thanks for the +1 on the PDA. I was leaning toward the PDA, anyway.

However, I may have to go with the ex-word. It seems we can bring denshi jisho into some tests but I think the PDA will not be allowed. Will be checking that with the lecturers this week.

thanks again!

I'm from Australia too, I just bought my Benq s6 from the online store from the link provided. I must say though, they're a bit dodgy in that they took a week and a half before they even decided to post the item, but once they did it delivery wasn't so bad (roughly a week and a half). The communication isn't so good with this store, but once you finally got your item you won't care as much.

If you do go for the Axim PDA, online is also the way to go to buy it. You can probably find some good deals on ebay - otherwise check the ebay US site and ask the sellers if they ship to Australia, you might get a better deal, depends on shipping costs.

Also if you want something similar to Benq S6 but willing to spend more you might want to check out http://www.umpcportal.com/ for a list of excellent portable devices. The Viliv S5 looks but but much pricer

Hi,

thanks for the reply, again.

i like the idea of the Benq S6 because it is WinXP, bigger screen, can do all that the PDA does, etc. without the hassle of the japanese language input issues- that is, it is built into XP.

unfortunately, i think i have to buy the denshi jisho instead of the the Benq or PDA.

We are able to use a dictionary in some assessments and even though I study I just have a lousy memory and so the occassional aid is useful. BUT, PC's are not allowed, which makes sense.

thanks, again.