Rating: 
Summary: IPaq 3835 - Pin Problems
Review: I owned the IPAQ 3835 for about 4 months. One day when I put it in the cradle, it just totally stopped performing, black screen, couldn't access anything. I sent it back and am told that the pins are bent...The unit does not get hard use, I am the only user. I don't jam it into the cradle. These things have to be sturdy enough to go in and out of a cradle constantly. If the pins bend that easily, what's the point of paying to get it fixed? Got a total run around at HP/Compaq. Not a known problem etc. I have also had problems with the back light as has been mentioned by many others. This is not a prime time product. I feel as though I wasted hundreds of dollars. Think hard before buying this item.
Rating: 
Summary: Great Job, Compaq, but...
Review: I've used the iPaq 3635, 3765, and now, the 3835. I am quite an iPaq loyalist, and I love their new outing with the product line.The screen, for a obsessive compulsive like myself, allows for much greater color contrast, and minimizes on the grain when viewing digital images. I also love their decision to stick with the same form factor as the previous models; it works with previous expansion sleeves, and it still reigns as the BEST handheld. This is the first handheld that I can just hold in my hand, and it feels awesome to hold. I love their addition of the SD card slot on the top, but I feel somewhat cheated (here's where it lost a star). There are considerably smaller machines that offer the same as Compaq does with this device. I would have expected maybe an integrated CF slot? Integrated Wi-Fi? Although the more expensive model offers bluetooth, I'm sure alot more people would like to see a built in Wi-Fi chipset. To end on a good note, I've found that the new battery they have used adds a significant amount of battery life. In fact, I have found that my iPaq charges faster, and discharges about 20%-25% slower. Great job, guys. I also like the new software they have built in, allowing for something like 14 different backlight settings, and a percentage viewer for remaining battery life. I strongly reccomend the iPaq as your next purchase, but with the impending release of Xscale based systems, you might want to save your money for the new HP iPaqs.
Rating:
Summary: A great tool
Review: I received this PDA as a graduation present. It hasn't failed to amuse or organize my life. The only real complaint that I have is that sometimes things are slow when running multiple apps. Also, the sync feature isn't exactly flawless. These problems are inherent with anything this compact and powerful. All in all though, buy it, it won't disappoint. I carry my resume, emails, excel files, pictures, mp3's, etc and it works great once you learn to optimize certain programs for speed. The dashboard program is way too slow to be functional for my purposes. People can't hardly believe the capabilites of this little thing. It's faster than about 50% of the computers here at work.
Rating: 
Summary: Too unreliable !
Review: Don't buy this unit ! or any other 3800 series iPAQ's for that matter, they all have the same problem with the backlight often not coming on. I was told by technical support at Compaq, that the engineers are working on the problem, it is common to all 3800 Series iPAQ's, and that they have not come up with a solution as of 5/20/02. As a temporary solution I was told to reset the unit twice whenever the backlight doesn't come on. Unfortunately sometime that doesn't even solve the problem. Imagine buying a new TV, and turning it on, and not knowing whether or not you were going to see a picture after turning it on ? ? ? This kind of engineering bug is just unacceptable. I'm sorry, but I can't understand how this product got on the market in the first place ! I've opted for a refund...
Rating: 
Summary: Typical Microsoft Operating System
Review: I went from a Palm PDA (Palm OS) to a Compaq IPAQ 3835 because I think the color and features are superior than Palm, and they are in the 3835. HOWEVER, I really miss the Palm OS, it is the best around. Microsoft cannot get it right even in a Pocket PC. The first day I had the 3835 it locked up on me and I had to do a soft reset. Never happened with a Palm. Several soft resets later... Today I loaded Dashboard software from the disc that Compaq sends with the 3835 and everything went haywire. It was so locked up I had to do my first (and I am sure not last) HARD reset! I wish the US Government people would do away with Microsoft and Bill Gates. He belongs sweeping floors somewhere! Why doesn't Palm come out with an OS for computers?
Rating: 
Summary: Beats Palm by miles
Review: The hardware and the OS combine to produce a very useful and feature rich product. I am also the proud owner of a Palm VX BUT the 3835 beats the ... out of Palm. The handwriting recognition options esp. the transcriber and it's awesome recognition of cursive are awesome (I used to have a kbd with my Palm and have no need for kbd with PocketPC because of this feature). The screen resoution, colors, look and feel are simply fantastic. I esp love the notes application as I can embed voice recordings with text.
Con: The bulky pcmcia adaptor and/or cf adaptor. But I have a simple workaround as I carry the Compex IRE201 wireless/ir access point. The combo is a winner and gets the uhs and aahs of everybody incl. Palm/Handpsring owners. Whatever the business practices of Microsoft and the business status of Compaq, this product is definitely a feather in their cap.
Worth the price!!
Rating:
Summary: Not Ready for Prime Time
Review: I recently purchased an IPAQ 3870 and have been very dissappointed by Compaq's inability to release a product that works as advertised.
One of the main reasons for buying this unit is because of the SD (Secure Digital) card expansion slot. I needed it to store data and to also take my MP3s on the road when I traveled. I called Compaq's Pre-Sales number and spoke to a representative. I told them what I needed this for and they assured me it would work as advertised. After puchasing the unit and accesories (...), I immediately found problems with playing MP3's from the SD card. Part of the song would play, and it would then quit completely, or cycle through to the next song, only to exhibit the same problem. After speaking with a technical support rep. from the SD cards maker (Sandisk), they thought it could be a corrupted SD card. They sent me another one, only to find the problem still existed. After several emails to/from Compaq tech support, they told me it was a known issue and they are working on it, with no timeline given for a fix. In my opinion, there is no excuse for releasing a product that has not been throughly tested to perform as advertised. Once again, the users have become the beta testers. Now, because of the way it handles music files, I cannot and will not trust the SD expansion slot to store any critical data, for fear it will become corrupted. This is a serious flaw, and Compaq's "non-caring" attitude just worsens the case for purchasing a product like this. I was testing this for my company and have recommended they either consider another product or wait until Compaq resolves these issues. On the plus side, I will say as a basic PDA, it performs fine. It has a nice display, and thankfully, I did not get one with backlight problems, as some users have reported. The accessories work well, and it is nicely intergrated with Outlook. But these "bells and whistles" come at a premium price, and my old Handspring Visor functioned as a good PDA for this type of use (at only a fraction of the cost). I am giving it only 2 stars because basically Compaq doesn't have their act together. The "pre-sales" answers are not reliable, because obviously, they are not communicating with their tech support staff and are unaware of problems. They are probably just reading information off the sales brochures.
For anyone considering purchasing a 3800 series, I would go to the Compaq support forum and look at the problems that other people have experienced and then wait for Compaq to resolve these issues.
Rating:
Summary: iT MAKES THEM ALL JEALOUS
Review: In my company the choose palm as the supported PDA. This Compaq IPAQ is turning heads. I have show the CIO and the president already. They all love the design and the functionality. It is also cool when I play home movies of my kid on it. This is the coolest toy I have gotten in a long time. I know leave the laptop at the job. I use a cable and my StarTac phone to connect to the company mail server and have also been able to run Term Server client (it is small but do-able). For a couple of extra bucks you get so much more than a palm....Just hide the receipt from your significant other.
Hope this helped
Rating:
Summary: Great device could be better.
Review: Pros: multiple uses beyond what I expected in a handheld. Very clear and bright screen. cons: major problem with the backlight going out. This required 3-5 soft resets per event and about 3 events per day. This problem is discussed and really not adequately addressed by Compaq. This is annoying in a product costing over 600 US dollars after expansion etc.
Rating:
Summary: I love the product--don't like compaq technical support
Review: I love my new ipaq!!! I did a lot of research to make this decision and pricey purchase...I had a palm IIIxe and this is a big leap from that. I gave up palm because shortly after that purchase they discontinued the product with no warning or being able to purchase any accessories for it. I love the features of the 3835. I love the storage, memory, and the Microsoft Pocket PC 2000 software bundle. I love the ease of being able to sync with my computers at work and at home when it does sync. What I am not to keen on is Microsoft Active Sync v.3.5. Sometimes I am able to sync and sometimes I am not. This has happened at home and at work. Compaq technical support has basically called me the idiot and has not provided competent information or assistance. I work everyday in the technology field dealing with customers and their customer service [stinks]. If you can use this product and never have to deal with Compaq please consider it a blessing. I didn't care for having to download the manual for the Ipaq either. All in all if you get past those things it is a great product. A mini laptop. So I have to give the product a 5, but Compaq technical support a negative (-5).
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