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Specifications
Operating System Microsoft Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition Phone
Edition -Outlook, Word, Excel, Internet Explorer for Pocket PC included- Processor: Intel PXA270 Processor 312 MHz
-
Memory: 128MB total (64MB ROM and 64MB SDRAM) Up to 55 MB user available
12 MB iPAQ File Store -
Wireless connectivity: Quad band GSM/GPRS/EDGE data, Bluetooth 1.2, IrDA
SIR 1.2, -
Integrated GPS: High sensitivity GPS receiver with HP Quick GPS Connection
Utility; - Audio: Integrated mic, receiver, speaker and 2.5 mm headphone stereo jack;
-
Expansion: SD slot - Supports 1-bit SDIO and 4-bit SD/MMC type standard,
Mini SD Slot . Supports 1-bit and 4-bit SD/MMC Type memory -
Camera: Built-in HP Photosmart 1.3 MP digital camera, 1280 x 1024 (SXGA)
resolution; - Display: 3.0. (75mm) Transflective TFT QVGA with 64K color LED backlit;
-
Dimensions 118mm x 71mm x 21mm; Wt: 5.8 oz (165 g)
- Battery: Removable user-swappable 1200 mAh Li-Ion rechargeable
Updates
Guide
to doing a ROM upgrade
HP
Protect Tools (21 Dec 2005) - Adds security functions such as folder encryption and login authentication. However, the software has issues and are backup/restore unfriendly. I also couldnt find a way other than a hard reset to remove it
Software Compatibility
Due to the iPAQ’s unique square screen which I assume was to accomodate the keypad and mobile phone buttons, I found a number of apps that got broken due to buttons being inaccessible as they were poorly designed for the more common longer screens. There is a simple work around which is to use Nyditot’s Virtual Display to create a virtual screen with the correct screen ratios allowing the buttons to be accessible with an additional scroll bar. Compiled below is a list of softwares that I have tried and its results.
| Software | Comments |
| CodeWallet Pro 5 | Works fine. |
| Destinator v3.1 |
Absolute pain to setup and get working. Has some screen size problems and it also refused to use the internal gps’s com port 7. Ultimately had to depend on a Serial splitter such as the one from Eltima or GpsGate create a virtual port that was useable by Destinator. |
| Eltima Serial Splitter |
Works well but locks up any software using it with no prior warning when 1MB of gps data is transferred in the demo version. |
| GpsGate 1.10 | Works fine. |
| hitchhiker 0.3.3 | Works well but unable to connect to closed network. |
| MorphGear 2.3.0.2 |
Successor to PocketGB but still has minor glitches such as control |
| Nyditot Virtual Display 4.04 | Works fine. |
| NetFront v3.1 | Works fine. |
| PocketGB |
Works with minor glitches such as control buttons locking down in the middle of play. |
| Pocket Warrior |
Seems to startup fine but was unable to get it working with a Spectec Wifi card which isnt in their list of supported cards. |
| Pocket Monopoly |
Buttons at bottom cut off due to screen size. You get stuck when you try |
| Pocket Music Player v3.2 | Works fine but certain screens are unusable due to screen size. |
| Resco File Explorer 2003 v5.13 | Works fine. |
| This is indispensable on my pda, not only does it work fine but its opensourced and free as well. The player is capable of playing all video compressions as advertised but struggles with codecs that require more resources causing video files such as Xvid to suffer from framedrops. | |
| WiFiFoFum 0.3.3 |
GPS works surprisingly well but the software needs more work as I was unable to connect to secure Access Points. The radar mode does not show the actual location of Access Points but rather their signal strength. |
Review
On the whole, I found this pda to be one of the best smartphone combo in the market at the present moment even though it had many faults. Firstly, HP got it right with an imperfect yet reliable GSM device, I’ve used a Palm Tungsten W and a Treo 180 but both PDAs crashed constantly resulting in missed calls. I also liked the addition of GPS plus one SD slot and mini SD slot which was one of the main reasons I chose the iPAQ over an O2 xda.
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Brinley Ang is a sysadmin, web dev, coder, geek boy, jedi knight fragger, caffine addict, deaf meloncholic and rockstar wannabe. Listens to the sex pistols and a wide assortment of heavy metal.
