The HP iPAQ Pocket PC h1910

I got to test drive the new HP iPAQ Pocket PC h5450 recently. This beauty has Intel's PXA250 (400 MHz) processor and comes with 64 MB RAM and 48 MB ROM (20 MB of which is accessible to the user). Its beautiful 64K color transflective TFT screen is the brightest display available on any Pocket PC. And the built-in SDIO card slot lets you add storage memory or I/O devices. Finally, there are a variety of integrated wireless features, including Bluetooth, 802.11 Wi-Fi, and consumer infrared functionality.

Aware of Dell's entry into the market, HP introduced the $300 h1910 Pocket PC described below. But wisely, they also decided to play to their strong suit and continue to innovate in the high-end Pocket PC market. Toshiba beat them off the line with the e740, a 400 MHz device with SD and CF card slots and built-in 802.11b wireless capability. I was impressed with the e740 and wrote about it in the November 2002 issue of Pocket PC magazine (www.PocketPCmag.com/Nov02/e740.asp). In its day—3 months ago—the Toshiba e740 was at the head of the pack.

However, HP refused to stand still and the h5450 has retaken the pole position with a feature/benefit mix that can't be beat—for now! I had the opportunity to be one of the very first to put a pre-production unit of the h5450 through its paces.

"hp" logo replaces "Compaq"

The first thing I noticed about the h5450 was the new HP branding. Gone is the Compaq logo, replaced on this and all future iPAQs with the lower case "hp" logo. While this change really doesn't affect the performance of the iPAQ, it does bear witness to the fact the Compaq, the company that captured the Pocket PC high ground with the original iPAQ H3600, is finally gone.

There are some obvious physical changes in the device compared to previous versions of the iPAQ. The black plastic "hat" on the top of the device is thinner and covers more of the top. And it now houses three extra LED indicator lights, one each for the Wi-Fi and Bluetooth transceivers, the third is unused; but I would venture to say it will be used in the future for WAN radio. The screen, application launch buttons, and navigation pad have been repositioned to make room for the unique biometric fingerprint reader.

Finally—a user-replaceable battery!

Whether it was deserved or not, Compaq took heat from users and reviewers over the lack of a user-replaceable battery in previous versions of the iPAQ. The good news is that all the devices in the h5400 series will come with a user-replaceable lithium-polymer rechargeable battery. In addition, HP plans to offer a high-capacity 2,500 mAh replaceable battery as an option.

All 5400 series iPAQ will have a user-replaceable battery.

The h5450 also comes with what HP calls a backup battery. It is built into the device and not accessible by the user. However, the backup battery has only enough juice to power the Pocket PC for a few minutes while you change main batteries. Don't expect it to keep your RAM data alive if the main battery runs out.

Built-in wireless capability

The h5450 is not the first iPAQ to come with built-in Bluetooth capability. However, the software used to control this integrated radio has taken on a huge leap forward on the h5450. The Bluetooth Manager utility has been enhanced to support the following functions and tasks:

• Exchanging contacts, calendar items, and tasks with other Bluetooth-equipped Pocket PCs
• Exchanging electronic business cards
• Transferring files
• Accessing dial-up networks
• Synchronizing data with a Bluetooth-equipped computer
• Partnering with a cell phone
• Connecting to serial ports
• Connecting to a Bluetooth LAN
• Interfacing with a Bluetooth headset
• Printing to a Bluetooth printer
• Creating a personal area network to chat, play games, etc.