Psion PDA—How does it look today?

Psion 5MX is considered one of the best portable devices with a mechanical keyboard in tech history. Is it really so? Let’s find this out.

It is easy to find reviews and YouTube videos about any device nowadays. But when we are talking about things like a mechanical keyboard, no review can replace personal experience. So I decided to buy a Psion 5MX on eBay — it is easy to find it, and the price can vary from 50$ to 250$ depending on the bit of luck and the device's condition. There were also two other reasons for me to have a Psion. First, this was a device that I wanted to buy in the 2000s when I was a student — the 5MX is a sort of ultraportable computer that could be very useful at that time. Second, I am not a “copywriter” — I write only about things that I’ve really used myself, and testing a real thing is also a part of the fun. So, finally, I’ve got this:

Let’s see how it works.

Hardware

The first thing to mention is the size. The Psion 5MX size is definitely not small, but it is also not too big — it is only a bit larger than my Samsung Galaxy Ultra:

Psion 5MX will not fit in any pocket, but the same is also true for many modern smartphones. So if you are able to carry a large phone or an ultra-light laptop, you can easily take the Psion as well. It can be a nice size for people who want to have a lightweight device that is more powerful than a smartphone but don’t want to carry a full-size laptop.

Psion 5 series was released in 1999 and it was a nice piece of hardware for its time. Large 5.6" 640×240 16 greyscale LCD screen with touchscreen support, 36 MHz ARM CPU, 16 MB RAM, EPOC32 OS, CompactFlash, serial port and IrDA connectivity, internal speaker and microphone, and finally, a really nice mechanical keyboard — all this is not bad for a portable device even today.

The keyboard is definitely a key feature of the Psion device. It looks good in pictures and in real life, but let’s be honest — it is too small and can not replace a full-size keyboard. The tactile feeling is good, but the keys are smaller, and some symbols, like “-”…