Pocket packet packs punch
Hp h2210 iPAQ Pocket PC
$599
www.hp.com.au

Reviewer: PTE John Wellfare

Pocket PCs have gradually increased in popularity during the past few years, owing largely to improvements in technology that mean a pretty powerful little palmtop is within the realms of affordability for an average income earner.

Hp has a finger in just about every technology pie and this one’s no different. The Hp iPAQ range is highly regarded in the Pocket PC business and it’s not hard to see why.

For its size, the h2210 is quite fast – even programs like Media Player (in case you didn’t know, you can watch video on your palmtop these days) load quickly.

What impressed me most about the h2210 was the ability to use both SD memory cards and Compact Flash.

The PC’s in-built 64Mb of available memory may not be enough to fulfil all your needs, but add the ability to plug in the memory cards that have become so commonplace in other digital equipment, and there really isn’t a limit to what you can do.

One of the simpler features of the h2210 – and standard among most pocket PCs these days – is the touch screen, which eliminates the problems of dealing with tiny buttons like you do with your mobile and using awkward mouse buttons or touch pads like you do with your laptop.

Accessing your files requires just a simple tap of the h2210’s attached “pen” (or a fingernail if you’re in a rush).

Almost all the software you can imagine you’ll need is already provided, mostly from Microsoft (although startlingly bug-free).

You have Pocket Word, Pocket Excel, the previously mentioned Media Player, Outlook (which handles all you personal contact and calendar information as well as e-mail) and a suite of other handy goodies.

There’s even an application for programming all your remote controls into the device. There is also a massive range of software available to download over the Internet (which you can do either directly with the h2210, or by connecting it to your home PC), including voice recognition applications and street maps, if you want to hook your Pocket PC up to a GPS for convenient city navigation.

Writing on the h2210 can be done using a few different methods.

There’s a handy digital keyboard with the option for small or large (perhaps it should read “tiny” or little”) buttons, which isn’t as difficult as it seems when you first begin.

There’s also a cool auto-transcriber that allows you to write on the screen as you would a normal notepad, and trans forms your jumbled cat-scratch into pristine print.

The transcriber also takes a little programming before it learns exactly how you write and thus how to interpret your letters – the first time you use it is likely to be a very frustrating experience.

Hp’s h2210 is a top item to have on the grounds of pure gadgetability alone, but it is also extremely useful.

For a disorganised person like myself, the iPAQ has had transforming effect – I shouldn’t ever be late for an appointment again.

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