There's never been a better time to buy a Pocket PC. We not only have a variety of powerful low-end devices available, we also have a number of compact and versatile high-end Pocket PCs on the market, including Fujitsu Siemens' Pocket LOOX. They introduced the LOOX in Europe last year, but delayed making it available in the U.S. until now. It's a stylish, feature-rich device targeted toward "power" and enterprise users.
FujitsuSiemens PocketLoox Pocket PC
An attractive and sleek Pocket PC packed with features
With its sleek lines, rounded edges, and two-tone color scheme, the LOOX is one of the most attractive Pocket PCs on the market. The rubberized gun metal blue grips on the left and right edges are practical as well as pleasing to the eye. The silver-colored plastic case has a quality feel to it, but don't drop it--it scratches easily.
Screen 1
Screens 1 and 2 (above), show the features on the
left and right edges of the LOOX.
Powered by the new XScale PXA250 processor, the LOOX comes with 64 MB of RAM (59 MB of which is available to run programs and store data) 32 MB of flash ROM (none of which is available to the user), and built-in Bluetooth capability. A Type II CompactFlash card slot and a Secure Digital card slot provide ample expansion capability without the need for bulky sleeves. However, the SD slot is non-SDIO compliant and can only be used to add storage memory.
The LOOX has a 3.5" diagonal, sidelit touch screen that displays 65,000 colors. Although the screen uses the older "reflective" display technology (newer models have "transflective" screens), it is extremely bright and easy on the eyes. Graphics look good on it, with decent color saturation and a comfortable level of contrast. Text is sharp and very pleasing to behold. But I noticed a strange purple-brownish tint if I peered at the screen closely when using applications that displayed text using ClearType.
One of the best features of the LOOX is the ambient light sensor, which automatically adjusts the brightness of the screen depending on lighting conditions. (Brightness can be adjusted manually if you prefer.)
Its non-removable, high-capacity, 1520 mAh lithium-polymer rechargeable battery provides an estimated 10 hours of battery life depending on usage. My testing under worst-case conditions (playing games, listening to MP3s) revealed the battery life to be much shorter, but comparable to other Pocket PCs.
A pleasure to use
The Fujitsu Siemens Pocket LOOX is functional as well as stylish. A side-mounted jog dial on the top of the left edge allows easy scrolling through large documents and Web pages. The IR port is mounted on a bulge above the jog dial. Underneath the jog dial is the start button, which brings up SpeedMenu, Fujitsu's task launching application (Screen1). The right side of the device features a switch above the record button to toggle Bluetooth on or off (Screen2). A gold-plated headphone connector on the top left side of LOOX contributes to the very good sound quality of the device.
Printer-friendly version