Here is another old post I found.
First Impressions
They say the first impression is the most important... Well, so far in this little "mini review" I will say that its a very snappy little device, has plenty of memory, and a pretty nice sized battery!
1 The iPAQ Itself...
The iPAQ is a very good unit. On the top , you have the headphone jack, the compact flash slot, the SD card slot, The infrared port, and the stylus silo. The left side, which has a ruber coating for grip, holds the flip cover and record button. The right side is blank with just the flip cover holder. The bottom contains the sync and charge connector, along with the soft reset button. From the front we have the status indicators for charging, alarms, and wireless, the power button, speaker, microphone, and 4 buttons with a navigation pad in the center. In the center is the QVGA 3.5 inch screen. The back contains the battery release button and cover.
2 The Buttons
The buttons have 2 functions. One is accessed by pressing, and the other by pressing and holding. The buttons in order from left to right are Calender, Contacts, Messaging, and iTask. The secondary functions in order from left to right are landscape/portrait screen toggle, HP ProtectTools security, iPaq Wireless, and go to the today screen.
3 The Indicators
The charge indicator is a bit different then on most PDA's as if its charging, it flashes amber, if its fully charged it glows amber, and flashes green on notifactions. The wireless indicator will flash blue if either Wi-Fi and/or Bluetooth are on.
4 Flip Cover
This is very useful, and its removable if you don't want to use it. There's no huge hump that remains when you remove it. Its semi-clear, as its a smoke color. Its fine though since you can still see the screen with it down, however you can't use the buttons.
5 Software
The iPAQ runs on Windows Mobile 5.0 and contains all your basic software but HP included some more stuff on the device. iTask is a good example. Its software that lets you close running applications, and has some quick launch buttons. This software is actually made by ThumbsUp, not HP. The today panel, which displays general information, is made by RhinoCode. Very nice touch if you ask me. Another addition is HP ProtectTools, a security application. You also get the iPAQ Wireless for turning on Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. HP also has a new HP Image Zone program for viewing pictures.
6 The Stylus
This is perhaps the most overlooked aspect of a PDA in my opinion. The stylus is plastic but its not flimsy. Its a little small but comfortable to use. You need the tip of it to press the reset button as you can't really press it with any other ones.
7 Box Contents
HP includes the basic manuals and software CD. The also include a cradle! Not every PDA includes one so this is a very welcome sight for me! The power adapter is a wall wart though, but it is actually quite small. HP also includes a little adapter so you can charge the PDA without the cradle.
8 Battery and Cradle
HP does not include a spot to charge a second battery on the cradle. This may be because the cradle appears to be universal with holders based on series. The battery is a thin but big 1440MAH battery. While I have never timed it, the battery life is quite good. You can always purchase additional batteries if you need to. You access the battery by pulling on the release button and oping the cover off.
9 The Internals
The HX2495b contains a 520MHZ X Scale ARM processor, 192MB ROM, and 64MB RAM. The 520MHZ processor should be fast enough for almost everyone. There is built in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.
10 Screen
The 3.5 inch QVGA display is very bright and vivid. There is no fading and the back light is even.
11 Pros
+ Fast
+ Good battery life
+ Dual expansion options
+ Built in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth
+ Cradle included
+ Flip cover is hard plastic
12 Cons
- Can't open cover with headphones in
- Cradle doesn't have second battery slot
- Stylus could be bigger
- Charge indicator is different
More pictures can be found Here.
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